MIAMI, Sept. 9, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dolphin Digital Media, Inc. (OTCBB:DPDM) ("Dolphin Digital Media" or the "Company") (http://www.dolphindigitalmedia.com), a creator of secure social networking websites for children, is excited to announce the launch of Dolphin Digital Studios. As a new division of the company, Dolphin Digital Studios will create original programming that premieres online, with an initial focus on content geared toward tweens and teens.
Dolphin Digital Studios will begin production on its first project in the fourth quarter of 2010 for a scheduled release in early 2011. Dolphin Digital Studios plans to produce between 8 and 10 web series per year. Some projects may be self-financed, while some projects currently under development will be funded through project-specific strategic and financial partnerships. This will allow Dolphin Digital Studios to have attractive financing alternatives while developing its slate of programming.
The Company expects each web series created by Dolphin Digital Studios to generate $1 million in revenue, with net margins of 20% to 30% per project. Dolphin Digital Studios already has several projects under development. Web series, in general, have a fairly short development and production cycle, thus allowing for quick distribution in comparison with traditional television and film models. Thus, the Company anticipates that its financials will be positively impacted shortly after the distribution of a given web series produced by Dolphin Digital Studios.
Dolphin Digital Studios is a natural fit and progression in the core business of Dolphin Digital Media—entertaining its customers through high-quality digital programming. Furthermore, the web series from Dolphin Digital Studios can be repackaged for distribution into "traditional media," such as television and home video.
For distribution into such outlets, Dolphin Digital Studios will capitalize on its existing relationship with Dolphin Entertainment, one of the top independent producers and distributors of children's programming in the world. Founded in 1996, Dolphin Entertainment is an Emmy-nominated production and distribution company that has recently produced programming for Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network, including the hit television series Zoey 101. Dolphin Entertainment currently distributes its children's programming into 300 million homes in over 100 countries.
"There is an enormous appetite for high-quality web series, and there is little doubt that the future of entertainment is digital," states Bill O'Dowd, CEO and President of Dolphin Digital Media. "At the same time, our management experience in traditional media formats allows us to fully leverage the content we produce across a variety of platforms, including television and DVD. This is an exciting launch for the company and our shareholders. The name of our company is Dolphin Digital Media, after all, and the launch of Dolphin Digital Studios allows us to fully capitalize on our expertise while driving revenue and shareholder value."
"The creation of Dolphin Digital Studios offers several advantages for Dolphin Digital Media," states Nelson E. Famadas, Chief Operating Officer for Dolphin Digital Media. "First and foremost, the Company expects to generate near-term revenue while developing a long-term asset with the creation of a digital content library. Furthermore, we plan to develop a variety of 'brands' that can be utilized across a variety of digital media, including mobile phones and electronic download services. Finally, some of these brands may become 'hits,' which would allow them to jump platforms into feature films and television series, and therefore would generate significantly higher revenues than the web series."
According to a recent study by the Kaiser Family Foundation, 8-18 year-olds devote an average of 7 hours and 38 minutes across a typical day, or more than 53 hours per week, to using entertainment media. This creates a huge opportunity for quality content providers for this audience, which is no longer merely entertained by traditional television programming. In addition, advertisers have taken notice, with digital-marketing research firm eMarketer estimating that online video ad spending will grow 48 percent to $1.5 billion in 2010 and will hit $5 billion by 2014.
ABOUT DOLPHIN DIGITAL MEDIA, INC.
Dolphin Digital Media, Inc. is dedicated to the twin causes of online safety for children and the production of high quality digital content. By creating and managing child-friendly social networking websites utilizing state-of the-art fingerprint identification technology, Dolphin Digital Media has taken an industry-leading position with respect to internet safety. Also, with the launch of Dolphin Digital Studios, the company is at the forefront of the growing digital entertainment sector. Please visit http://www.dolphindigitalmedia.com for more information.
ABOUT DOLPHIN ENTERTAINMENT
Dolphin Entertainment, founded in 1996 by Mr. Bill O'Dowd, is one of the world's leading entertainment companies specializing in live-action programming targeted towards children and young adults. In addition to the Emmy-nominated and top U.S.-rated children's series Zoey 101, Dolphin's other Executive Producer credits include Nickelodeon hit series Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide and Nickelodeon's first-ever TV movies Last Day of Summer, Shredderman Rules!, Gym Teacher, and the Roxy Hunter franchise.
SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT
This press release may include forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements related to anticipated revenues, expenses, earnings, operating cash flows, the outlook for markets and the demand for products. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are inherently subject to uncertainties and other factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Such statements are based upon, among other things, assumptions made by, and information currently available to, management, including management's own knowledge and assessment of the Company's industry and competition. The Company refers interested persons to its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-KSB and its other SEC filings for a description of additional uncertainties and factors, which may affect forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no duty to update its forward-looking statements.