Future Of BET Programming Will Be Animated

Entertainment President Reginald Hudlin Hires Three Top Executives In Newly-Created Posts, Including the Network's First-Ever Animation Exec

LOS ANGELES - BET President of Entertainment Reginald
Hudlin continues to shape the management structure of BET's programming division with the second wave of executive hires. Hudlin, who has only been in his post since July, has now brought aboard a trio of new senior
executives as part of a strategy to expand BET's original programming.

Among those new hires is an executive to execute Hudlin's plans for developing a first-ever animation production arm for BET.

Denys Cowan, most recently Producer and Supervising Director for Sony Television Animation on the Boondocks series for Cartoon Network's "Adult Swim" programming block, joins BET as Senior Vice President for Animation,
under a newly-structured BET Entertainment Group. A 15-year veteran of the entertainment industry, Cowan was also the chief creative force behind the Static Shock animated series from Warner Brothers Animation that earned him
consecutive Emmy Award nominations from 2001-2003. In addition to developing animated series for the channel, Cowan's responsibilities include creating animated product for the home video market as well as online and wireless.

"Denys took Static Shock, a comic book character he co-created, and turned it into a hit series for Kids' WB and the Cartoon Network," said Hudlin. "He was also incredibly instrumental in making the Boondocks a hit. He's a team player who knows how to make it happen."

Also joining the BET Entertainment Group are Byron Phillips as Executive Vice President of Entertainment and Darrell Walker as Executive Vice President for Business Affairs. The addition of Phillips and Walker help to solidify Hudlin's strategy to continue strengthening BET's relationships to
the Hollywood entertainment community. All three of the new executives will report to Hudlin in BET's Los Angeles office.

Phillips will lead original programming development, strategic planning, and overall business development. Prior to joining BET, Phillips was founder and CEO of AHM Entertainment, an integrated branded entertainment and marketing solutions company with past clientele that includes Pepsi, Walt Disney, EA sports, Universal Gaming, EMI and Warner Bros Records. Phillips was also partners with Reggie Hudlin in the Television and Feature Film production company, HudPhilms. He holds a Bachelors Degree from UCLA, along with a Masters in Business Administration from Harvard University.

"Branded entertainment will be a growing part of BET's programming mix, and Byron's experience in that arena will be invaluable" says Hudlin. "He's also the first creative executive at BET with major record label experience, so he'll play a large role in expanding our working relationship with our music business partners. We've been working together for a while, so he's very attuned to my programming tastes."

Walker comes to BET from Mandalay Pictures, where he was formerly Executive Vice President for Business and Legal Affairs. His 15-plus years of deal making experience include tenure with Sony Pictures Entertainment and Columbia Pictures as a senior Business Affairs executive. Walker's new role for BET is serving as the head business affairs executive on BET Entertainment Group projects and negotiations. He earned his Juris Doctorate at Stanford University Law School; received his Masters Degree
from The Queen's College, Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar; and earned a Bachelors Degree from Whittier College.

"Darrell is a total class act that is respected all over town. I've been on the other side of the desk with him at Sony and at Mandalay and I can say first hand no matter how tough the negotiation is, he's always fair," Hudlin said.

ABOUT BET

BET, a subsidiary of Viacom, Inc. (NYSE: VIA and VIA.B), is the nation's leading television network providing quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs programming for the African-American audience. The BET Network reaches more than 80 million households according to Nielsen media research, and can be seen in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean.

BET is a dominant consumer brand in the urban marketplace with a diverse group of branded businesses: BET.com, the Number 1 Internet portal for African Americans; BET Digital Networks - BET Jazz, BET Gospel and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for cutting-edge entertainment tastes; and BET Event Productions, specializing in a full range of event production services, including event management, venue selection, talent recruitment, sound, lighting and stage production.