Nickelodeon's First Original Broadband Series, Nick Cannon's Star Camp, To Debut Sunday, July 22, On TurboNick

LOS ANGELES, July 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Nickelodeon, the number-one entertainment brand for kids, will debut a new original series, Nick Cannon's Star Camp, July 22, exclusively on TurboNick, the network's broadband video player. Executive produced by host Cannon, Quincy Jones and Quincy "QD3" Jones III, the show selects and follows eight members of a new youth super-group hand-picked by Cannon as they literally learn how to be stars. The series of five 15-minute episodes will stream on TurboNick (http://www.turbonick.com/) every Sunday, and the finale performance will air in Nickelodeon's TEENick block on Sunday, August 26 (6 p.m. ET/PT).

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"Streaming video has become a big part of how today's multi-tasking generation of kids is experiencing entertainment. Several of our properties like Mr. Meaty and Avatar have developed a huge following online, so introducing an original series to air exclusively on TurboNick is the natural next step in super-serving our audience," said Marjorie Cohn, Executive Vice President of Original Programming and Development, Nickelodeon Networks. "We're especially excited to be launching this series in collaboration with top talent like Nick Cannon and Quincy Jones, who know how to connect with our audience on any platform."

Developed to give a select group of kids the opportunity to showcase their talents, Nick Cannon's Star Camp produces The Giggle Club, an eight-member all-star super group. After the cameras stop following the group as they learn the fundamental tools needed to make it in the music industry, plans for them include recording an album and performing in a live stage show tour, thereby fulfilling their dreams of stardom. To help get them there, Nick Cannon and Quincy Jones call on a "media dream team" of producer and director Debbie Allen and choreographer to the stars, Fatima Robinson. The group is put through a "megastar boot camp" with state of the art equipment and resources to hone in on their performance skills.

"There is so much untapped talent out there, particularly among young kids today. We wanted to find this talent and give kids the training necessary to mold them into the budding stars that they can be," said Cannon. "I can't think of a better network to be working with than Nickelodeon and a better way to reach today's multi-platform kid audience than by airing this series on TurboNick."

"I am committed to projects that have a positive influence on today's youth," said Jones. "Nick Cannon's Star Camp is a perfect fit and a beautiful way to help create the next generation's successful writers, actors, musicians and producers."

The Giggle Club features eight members, ranging in age from 13 to 19. They are Cashae Davis (Young Daisy), Antonio Anderson (M-One), Tehabreana Mc Nair (Bre-Roca), Malik Mc Nair (Mac Flossy), Jessica Salinaz (Jessi J), William May (Big Will), Amanda Moseley (Mandy Rain) and Jesse Brown (Casper).

TurboNick will complement the Nick Cannon's Star Camp streaming experience with background on the show and The Giggle Club members, as well as a message board where kids can actively discuss their thoughts on the new mega-stars. Printed interviews with The Giggle Club members will also appear on the site.

Nick Cannon's Star Camp is executive produced by Quincy Jones, Nick Cannon, Quincy "QD3" Jones III, Ray Brown and Sean McNair. The show's creators are Ray Brown and Sean McNair.

Executive producer/host Cannon is no stranger to the Nickelodeon family. First appearing on Nickelodeon's sketch comedy series All That, he went on to star in and executive produce his own comedy series on the channel, "The Nick Cannon Show." Cannon is also a successful rapper, actor, writer and producer of hit shows Wild N Out and Short Circutz on MTV. He has shared the comedy stage with the likes of Chris Tucker, Damon Wayans and Chris Rock.

Entertainment impresario/producer-arranger-performer Jones has won 27 Grammys and is the most Grammy-nominated artist in history (79). He produced the best-selling album and best-selling single of all time. Jones has worked with the greatest artists of all time, from Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder and Miles Davis to Bono, Celine Dion, Ludacris, 50 Cent, will.i.am and Alicia Keys. He turned rapper Will Smith into a TV and film star with The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and launched Oprah Winfrey to global fame with The Color Purple. Jones currently serves as a producer of the Tony Award-winning Broadway production The Color Purple. A tribute album honoring his career and featuring today's hottest stars is in production. Among his television credits as an executive producer are the hit series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Mad TV as well as HBO's celebration of President Clinton's inauguration, An American Reunion, and The 68th Annual Academy Awards.

Quincy "QD3" Jones III, founder of QD3 Entertainment, is a respected multi-platinum producer, having created hits for artists including LL Cool J, Ice Cube and Tupac Shakur. QD3 Entertainment has produced a successful series of documentary films chronicling urban and hip hop culture and creates content for multiple platforms, including television, the Internet, mobile and video on demand.

TurboNick premiered as the first broadband player for kids in 2005 to complement Nickelodeon's on-air programming. It is one of several multiplatform experiences that allow kids to access Nickelodeon content anywhere in the world at any time of the day. Users are able to search from a library of hundreds of long and short-form videos of Nickelodeon favorites. And the video streaming on TurboNick never stops. Even as users watch, browse, interact with and personalize their experience, they are able to stay connected with programming as never before. TurboNick has experienced triple digit percentage increases over last year in terms of traffic. For the month of May, it garnered 106 million streams, a +542% increase over May 2006.

Nickelodeon, in its 28th year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books, magazines and feature films. Nickelodeon's U.S. television network is seen in almost 92 million households and has been the number-one- rated basic cable network for 12 consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. .