“THE 2012 BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS” SET TO RETURN TO ABC LIVE, SUNDAY, MAY 20

ABC announced that “The 2012 Billboard Music Awards” will return to ABC and will be broadcast live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, SUNDAY, MAY 20, sponsored by Chevrolet and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. The live broadcast will be co-executive produced by Richard Beckman and Don Mischer.
“The 2011 Billboard Music Awards” (8:00-11:00 p.m.)
ABC’s three-hour broadcast of “The 2011 Billboard Music Awards” ran No. 1 against its broadcast competition in its 8:00-11:00 p.m. time period among Adults 18-49 (3.0/8), leading Fox by 11% (2.7/7), NBC by 25% (2.4/6) and CBS by 114% (1.4/4). In addition, the wide-appealing music awards show also finished No. 1 against its broadcast competition in the time period with Adults 25-54, across all key Women (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54) and Kids 2-11.
* Head to head from 9:00-11:00 p.m., ABC’s “2011 Billboard Music Awards” defeated NBC’s Season Finale of “Celebrity Apprentice” by 3% in Adults 18-49 (3.1/8 vs. 3.0/7) and by 72% in Adults 18-34 (3.1/9 vs. 1.8/5).
* Opposite stiff end-of-season/sweep competition, “The 2011 Billboard Music Awards” produced ABC’s top Adult 18-49 number in the time period in nearly 3 months – since 3/6/11.
* Rising over its most recent telecast in 2006 (on 12/4/06) on Fox with viewers (+30% – 7.9 million vs. 6.1 million) and young adults (+11% – 3.0/8 vs. 2.7/7), “The 2011 Billboard Music Awards” drew its biggest audience since 2003 (on 12/10/03).
About Billboard
Billboard is the world’s most influential music brand reaching key executives and tastemakers in and around the music business through Billboard magazine, Billboard.biz <http://www.billboard.biz/>, Billboard Conferences, Billboard Bulletin, and other targeted newsletters, and millions of music fans through Billboard.com <http://www.billboard.com/> and Billboard Events. The Billboard brand is built on its exclusive charts and unrivaled reporting on the latest news, issues and trends across all genres of music. Billboard charts and content are consumed and referenced by millions of people in more than 100 countries through a content syndication deal with global news network, The Associated Press, and strategic relationships with other major companies around the world. In addition to North America, Billboard operates businesses in Brazil, Greece, Japan, Korea and Russia. Billboard is owned by Prometheus Global Media, a diversified company with leading assets in the media and entertainment arenas, including: Music (Billboard and its related conferences, events, and awards shows such as The Billboard Music Awards on ABC, and The Billboard Latin Music Awards on Telemundo), Entertainment (The Hollywood Reporter, Backstage, ShowEast, Cineasia, and CineEurope); and Advertising & Marketing (Adweek, Adweek Conferences and The CLIO Awards).
About Don Mischer Productions
Don Mischer is an internationally acclaimed producer and director of television and live events. He has been honored with 15 Emmy Awards, a record 10 Directors Guild of America Awards for Outstanding Directorial Achievement, 2 NAACP Image Awards, a Peabody Award for excellence in broadcasting and more. Don Mischer Productions credits range from “We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial” and the 100th Anniversary of Carnegie Hall to the Super Bowl half-time shows (Prince, The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen) and the opening ceremonies of both the Winter and Summer Olympic Games to name a few.
About MGM
The MGM Grand Garden Arena is home to concerts, championship boxing and premier sporting and special events. The Arena offers comfortable seating for as many as 16,800 with excellent sightlines and state-of-the-art acoustics, lighting and sound. Prominent events to date have included world championship fights between Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson, as well as Oscar de la Hoya vs. Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez; and concerts by The Rolling Stones, Madonna, Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Bette Midler, George Strait, Janet Jackson, Phil Collins, Billy Joel, U2, Lady Gaga, Sting, Coldplay, Alicia Keys, Jimmy Buffett and the Barbra Streisand Millennium Concert. The MGM Grand Garden Arena also is home to the annual Academy of Country Music Awards and the Frozen Fury NHL pre-season game, which features the Los Angeles Kings vs. Colorado Avalanche.
About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 140 countries and selling more than 4 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature spirited performance, expressive design, and high quality. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com <http://www.chevrolet.com/>.
About The LVCVA
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) is charged with marketing Southern Nevada as a tourism and convention destination worldwide, and also with operating the Las Vegas Convention Center and Cashman Center. With approximately 149,000 hotel rooms in Las Vegas alone and more than 10.5 million square feet of meeting and exhibit space citywide, the LVCVA mission centers on attracting ever-increasing numbers of leisure and business visitors to the area. For more information, go to www.lvcva.com or www.VisitLasVegas.com.