Creators of 'Trading Spaces' Reaching Out to Casual Gaming Community

KNOXVILLE, Tenn., Feb. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- RIVR Media Interactive (RMI), a spin-off of RIVR Media, the creators of Emmy-winning programming like "Trading Spaces" and "U.S. Poker Championship" is reaching out to casual gamers with the open beta launch of www.WidgetGames.com.

www.WidgetGames.com and its ground-breaking new service, "the Widget", will fuse booming social networking services with real-time interactivity and the ever-popular field of casual gaming. "Casual gaming" is defined as a friendly and accessible-to-everyone environment offering a wide spectrum of games, including familiar fare such as Checkers, Dominoes, Chess, and Reversi. www.WidgetGames.com will continue to add new games regularly, expanding the offering of classic traditional games, as well as innovative original titles. While the typical core "Gamer" audience is male and aged eighteen to thirty- four, casual gamers tend to be both women and men between the ages of thirty- five and sixty-five, with a slight demographic skew towards women, according to the International Game Developers Association (IGDA).

www.WidgetGames.com provides casual gaming to virtually any online user, from the dedicated gamer to the "just checking my email" weekend browser. The system requirements to utilize "the Widget" are minimal. The free service requires no downloads or installation, can be used by the most sparingly functional browser or computer, and does not require registration to play. The focus of the site is multiplayer gaming, allowing users to play with friends and family and create or join affinity groups that include co-workers, favorite sports teams, college alumni, and many other demographics and social circles. Statistics for all games are tracked and new ratings, scorings and categories are being implemented. As the user base grows, with a click of the mouse players will be able to challenge the best checkers player in their state, town, or from their school or work.

"www.WidgetGames.com is a hub and excellent launch pad for the user new to widget technology," notes Terry Hummel, President of RMI. "www.WidgetGames.com and casual gaming provide an excellent platform for friends and family to interact and spend time with others. The goal of www.WidgetGames.com is bringing people and communities together in a fun and interactive environment," said Hummel.

Implementable as an add-on to virtually any online community, www.WidgetGames.com can add depth and user-retention to any website seeking to connect with its users (and to connect its users with each other). The full- scale launch coupled with an aggressive online advertising campaign is scheduled for early April, 2008.

About RIVR Media Interactive (RMI)

RIVR Media Interactive, a division of RIVR Media, LP is an interactive media company that builds brands for niche audiences and the products they are passionate about, such as tattooing, casual gaming and online shopping. By coupling RMI's new media expertise with RIVR Media's state-of-the-art facilities and ability to adapt quickly to programming trends, RMI has created a one-stop shop for developing content-rich broadband web sites. With the Internet now at the core of its publishing platform, the company is connecting innovative programming with millions of people looking to enrich their lives through expert advice, interactive tools, online communities and other resources. More importantly, RIVR Media Interactive is able to fully engage users in one place, enabling advertisers and other sponsors to reach a focused and highly motivated audience.