WISCONSINREPORT.COM (05/30/08) - USA Network will kick-off a summer of scripted originals by launching its new drama series IN PLAIN SIGHT with an aggressive interactive marketing campaign developed in conjunction with digital innovators Big Spaceship, Electric Artists and The Hyperfactory. The multiplatform effort will feature robust interactive, viral and mobile elements focused on aggressive promotional extensions to immerse viewers in the world of the witness protection program. IN PLAIN SIGHT, a new original series, premieres Sunday, June 1st at 9:00 Central Time on USA Network.

"One of the most compelling aspects of IN PLAIN SIGHT is the show's promise to offer an unprecedented and accurate depiction of the Federal Witness Protection Program (WITSEC)," said Alexandra Shapiro, senior vice president, brand marketing & digital. Because this is a world with which people are not intimately familiar our challenge was how to make WITSEC, as accessible and relatable as possible for our viewers," said Shapiro.

"We knew digital solutions offered the easiest and most effective way to give our audience first hand experience of what its like to play the role of a US Marshal working in Witness Protection," Shapiro said.

USA partnered with Big Spaceship (the creators of "The Ultimate Search for Bourne") to develop WITSEC Confidential, a multi-media campaign that brings the intriguing world of Witness Protection to life by giving each viewer the opportunity to work alongside the lead characters of the show as the newest U.S. Marshal in the Albuquerque WITSEC office.

Starting in episode two, each week users and fans will be able to login to the WITSEC Confidential microsite at ips.usanetwork.com to participate in a new interactive case. Each of these cases will include original video briefings featuring Marshall Mann (Frederick Weller), and will require monitoring, protecting and in some cases tracking down federal witnesses.

To solve these challenges, players will need to use the tools provided, call witnesses and colleagues, and visit a wide range of locations to search for evidence and conduct interviews.

"WITSEC Confidential enables users to learn more about the show's premise, spend more time with the show's unique and compelling characters, and access exclusive content that extends the series narrative beyond its 12 week run, all in a fun experiential way," Shapiro added.

USA Network has partnered with online marketing, PR and promotion agency, electricArtists to launch a new Facebook application promoting the new USA Network series, IN PLAIN SIGHT at http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id-17869326103 called "How Well do you know your Facebook friends?" If their faces were hidden and all you had were facts to identify them, could you do it?

Take on the role of a U.S. Marshall in the new IN PLAIN SIGHT Facebook game that hides your friends in Witness Protection and challenges you to find them! The game dynamically pulls information from a friend's profile (any content that is not set to private) and delivers it into the game as "clues" to see how quickly the player can guess the friend's identity. The game consists of four rounds with each round giving less time to guess the friend's identity. The newsfeed will show the "friends" that a person has discovered.

USA Network partnered with The Hyperfactory to bring members of the IPS Mobile Fan Club a rich, interactive mobile experience. The mobile player must take on the role of a U.S. Marshall by choosing one of six witnesses to protect. The player must keep his or her witness happy, safe and alive by answering weekly challenges correctly. The wrong answers could put the witness in harms way or get him or her killed. If he or she answers incorrectly, the witness will not survive and the player will lose.

In addition to its digital efforts, USA Network has an aggressive traditional campaign in place including but not limited to, IN PLAIN SIGHT street teams, print, radio, aerial banners, airport presence (terminals and planes) and out-of-home in ten markets including a "Grand Central Station Domination" in New York City. Further, motion-activated IN PLAIN SIGHT audio-enabled posters have been placed throughout the New York metro area with messages such as "Welcome to witness protection. Now get lost."

IN PLAIN SIGHT stars Mary McCormack ("The West Wing," "Private Parts") as Mary Shannon, a U.S. Marshal working in the highly secretive branch of the witness protection program (WITSEC) who relocates Federal Witnesses, many of them who are career criminals, and many who are innocents that had the misfortune of witnessing a crime.

They all have one thing in common, someone wants them dead. Mary's job is to see that doesn't happen, while at the same time attempting to manage her own dysfunctional family. IN PLAIN SIGHT also stars Frederick Weller ("Law & Order: Criminal Intent," "The
Shape of Things"), Lesley Ann Warren ("Desperate Housewives," "Will & Grace"), Nichole Hiltz ("The Riches," "Strong Medicine"), Paul Ben-Victor ("The Wire," "Entourage"), Cristian de la Fuente ("Dancing with the Stars," "Ugly Betty") and Todd Williams ("Tilt," "Third Watch").

The series was created and written by David Maples ("Home Improvement," "Huff"), who serves as executive producer alongside Paul Stupin ("Dawson's Creek," "Beautiful People"). IN PLAIN SIGHT was shot entirely on location in and around Albuquerque, NM. In Plain Sight comes from Universal Media Studios.

USA Network is a program service of NBC Universal Cable a division of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience.