November 05, 2012 SPROUT® AND LAZYTOWN LAUNCH “THE SPROUT FAMILY CHALLENGE” STARRING CHICA THE CHICKEN
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New interactive digital initiative and app featuring heart-healthy inspiration from the American Heart Association and sponsored by The Learning Care Group

PHILADELPHIA, Pa.  – November 5, 2012 – Continuing its commitment to healthy living, Sprout and LazyTown are launching “The Sprout Family Challenge,” a new digital initiative and app designed to help families get energized and stay active together. To support this initiative, Sprout is offering a special online destination at SproutOnline.com with healthy tips and recipes that will inspire families to get moving together. They can also click on “The Sprout Family Challenge” link to download the mobile app and join Chica the Chicken from Sprout’s The Sunny Side Up Show and star of the upcoming The Chica Show (a new original series premiering on Sprout Saturday, November 24 at 11:30 a.m. ET), and LazyTown’s SuperHero Sportacus, for more fun activities.

“The Sprout Family Challenge” mobile app (compatible with ios devices), is an exciting, interactive tool that promotes healthy eating and exercise and fosters imagination and exploration with a set of active challenges and rewards from Chica and Sportacus. Parents and children are encouraged to interact on screen and complete challenges such as, “Let’s Ride,” “Let’s Play” and “Let’s Stretch.” Upon successful completion, their energy meter will go up and users can claim digital rewards that they can dance, sing and play along with including LazyTown music and video downloads.

Sponsored by The Learning Care Group with content contributions from the American Heart Association, “The Sprout Family Challenge” supports Sprout’s prosocial initiative “Kindness Counts” by encouraging families and preschoolers to “Be Kind to Yourself” through healthy living and activities. Sprout believes that Being Kind to Yourself is just as important as being kind to others.

“At Sprout, we are committed to helping families live healthier lives,” said Jim Multari, vice president of marketing at Sprout. “The Sprout Family Challenge encourages parents to join their preschoolers in establishing good eating and exercising habits that are simple and can be shared together.”

“Programs that encourage physical activity among our youth are more important than ever today with one in three American kids and teens being overweight,” said Dr. Stephen Daniels, pediatric cardiologist and Fellow of the American Heart Association. “Parents are essential decision makers when it comes to the nutrition, physical activity and health needs of their children. Providing resources for an entire family unit is a great way to get everyone engaged and curb the growing number of obese children in our country.”

“LazyTown is all about encouraging kids to be active and motivating parents to be active and positive role models in their children’s lives,” said Magnus Scheving, the creator of LazyTown who also plays the shows SuperHero, Sportacus. “This is why we are proud to be part of this digital initiative. LazyTown turns health into a game for the children and the whole family and launching this digital initiative and app with Sprout is part of that.”

The Learning Care Group is a sponsor of “The Sprout Family Challenge” and will be promoting the initiative in more than 900 schools across the country. They have been a proud supporter of “Kindness Counts” since August 2011, adding over 65,000 kind acts to the kindness counter. Now, the partnership begins a new chapter as Learning Care Group introduces Grow Fit, its company-wide program encouraging balanced nutrition practices and physical activity. Recently, Sportacus joined the Grow Fit launch celebration in Lewisville, Texas, while the Learning Care Group’s early child education centers nationwide also came together at their respective schools for this simultaneous sing-and-stretch moment amongst approximately 75,000 participants.

For additional information on Sprout programs or schedules, or to play games, download free coloring pages or find great activities for kids, visit SproutOnline.com. To find out where Sprout is available in your area, call 1.8.SPROUT.411 or go to SproutPlease.com.

About Sprout^®
Available in over 50 million homes, Sprout is the first 24-hour preschool destination available on TV, on demand and online for children ages 2-5 and their parents and caregivers. The 24-hour digital channel, which launched in September 2005 along with the website (SproutOnline.com), is the only channel that follows the day of a preschooler from breakfast to bedtime with its distinctive, interactive programming and original hosted blocks. Sprout’s VOD offering is the #1 on demand service for younger children with over one billion views.

Sprout is a partnership among NBCUniversal, PBS, Sesame Workshop and Apax Funds. Its program lineup of gold-standard, curriculum-based preschool shows includes: Sesame Street^®, Bob the Builder^™, Barney & Friends^™, The Wiggles^®, Caillou^®, Pajanimals^™, Thomas & Friends^™, LazyTown^™, and more.

www.SproutOnline.com

www.facebook.com/Sprout

www.twitter.com/SproutTV

About LazyTown

Rather than preach about what is good and healthy for children, LazyTown prefers to focus on the positive and lead by example to inspire children to be active and have fun. This is its unique selling point, and by remaining committed to this, LazyTown Entertainment has been able to develop the brand with integrity and authenticity. Today, the high-definition television series consists of 53 LazyTown episodes and 26 LazyTown Extra episodes produced with the BBC - and is currently broadcast in 128 countries. The TV series remains the company’s core asset, and continues to be broadcast worldwide to a recurring market of pre-school children. LazyTown is on a mission to move the world to be a healthier place. When we get kids moving, we get their families moving. And when families move, we are one step closer to moving the world. Move the body, move the mind, every day. LazyTown Entertainment is a Turner Broadcasting company.

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Press Contacts:

Rebecca Owens

Sprout

215.286.8894

rebecca_owens@sproutonline.com

Halli Kristinnson

LazyTown

halli@lazytown.com