Scripps Networks Acquires User-Generated Recipe and Community Site

KNOXVILLE, July 19: Scripps Networks—whose brands
include HGTV and Food Network—has acquired Recipezaar, a user-generated
recipe and community site featuring more than 230,000 recipes.

The acquisition is part of Scripps Networks' strategy to
aggressively move its web business beyond extensions of its linear TV networks
to become multi-branded applications that create communities of online
consumers with shared passions.

"Our interactive properties will continue to reflect
our powerhouse brands, but we no longer will function primarily as TV-branded
web services,” said Deanna Brown, the president of Scripps Networks Interactive
Group. "Think of it as an online lifestyle network with a series of
portals anchored by our own brands plus companion sites within the 'home,'
'food' and 'lifestyle' categories, where we will connect audiences with
content, community and commerce opportunities.”

According to Brown, Recipezaar will operate as a stand-alone
brand within Scripps Networks' online properties, functioning separately from,
but as a complement to, FoodNetwork.com. She hopes that the combination of
FoodNetwork.com and Recipezaar.com will increase audience share to 19 percent,
securing a dominant position in the food category over the long term. FoodNetwork.com
is the top-rated content provider on the Web in the Food & Cooking
category, according to Nielsen/NetRatings.

Founded in 1999 by former Microsoft employees Gay Gilmore
and Troy Hakala, Recipezaar recorded 2.3 million unique visitors in June. The site
enables user submission and community functionality, parsing and tagging.
Recipezaar provides food enthusiasts with a browsing tool, powerful search
capabilities, and personalized features that include "My Cookbook,”
"My Grocery List,” and recipe ratings and suggestions.

Recipezaar and its personnel will continue to operate out of
Seattle, with Gilmore serving as the VP within the Scripps Networks Interactive
Group and Hakala taking on the role of VP of technology development.