PHILIPS ARENA CELEBRATES 2001 - A YEAR OF SUCCESSES

ATLANTA - In its third season of operation, Philips Arena attracted big acts and packed crowds during 2001. The sports and entertainment arena is an anchor for the downtown Atlanta scene hosting over 200 events and receiving industry honors for the third consecutive year. Whether sports, music, or family events were the entertainment of choice, Philips Arena had something for everyone.

The venue kicked off the year with a sell-out crowd during the retirement of 12-season former Atlanta Hawks player Dominque Wilkins' jersey in January 2001, and ended the year on a high note with three back-to-back sold-out concerts by Georgia-based Widespread Panic December 29 - 31.

SPORTS RULES
Home to the NBA Atlanta Hawks and the NHL Atlanta Thrashers, in November the venue set its sports attendance record of 20,072 as the Hawks hosted the Washington Wizards and the return of six-time NBA champion Michael Jordan during the home opener. In that same month, the venue welcomed its five millionth guest during the Hawks game against the New York Knicks.

Philips Arena also entered into a partnership to become the home of its third national sports franchise and the Arena Football League's newest team - the Georgia Force - which kicked-off its inaugural season in April 2002. During 2001, the venue also hosted a variety of other sports/entertainment events including:

Philips Arena will again be the center of the sport world's attention as host of the 2003 NBA All Star Game and the 2004 U.S. Figure Skating Championships.

MUSIC AND CONCERTS
Philips Arena's vertical suite design featuring all 92 luxury suites "stacked" in opera house style - brought the upper rows of seats closer to the floor than any venue built in decades. This design - with input from R.E.M.'s Michael Mills - has proven to be a hit both with concert performers and their audiences.

Attracting major recording artists in 2001, Philips Arena confirmed an impressive list of sold-out concerts such as Madonna, U2, Elton John & Billy Joel, matchbox twenty and Eric Clapton. John/Joel's dual concert sold out in 15 minutes, setting the arena's record one-night gross with $1,990,010 in revenue.

Similarly, Irish rock group U2's "Elevation Tour" sold out in one hour and set the venue's all-time attendance record of 20,596. Madonna's 12-city U.S. tour sold out two back-to-back shows at Philips Arena, as she took her long awaited return to the stage after a 14 year touring absence in Atlanta.

"Extensive planning went into making Philips Arena an extraordinary concert venue. Musical artists love our acoustics and intimacy, and apparently fans do as well," said Philips Arena President Bob Williams.

Concert industry publications also cast a positive vote for Philips Arena. Pollstar magazine named Philips Arena the No. 1 concert arena in the U.S based on ticket sales for the third quarter of 2001. Amusement Business named Philips Arena the No. 2 concert and events arena in the U.S. in their "Mid-Year Report" on the concert industry based on second quarter gross ticket sales. Philips Arena's six month gross was listed as $12,404,418 with attendance of 386,551 for non-sports events. By year's end, Pollstar again ranked Philips Arena the No. 2 arena in the U.S. based on attendance.

The venue was also the recipient of the Facilities and Event Management magazine's Prime Site Award for the second year in a row as selected by votes from promoters and peers at other arenas. During 2001, Philips Arena hosted thirteen of the "Top 25 Tours" and eight of the nation's "Top Ten Touring Acts" ranked by Amusement Business.

On the home front, the venue hosted two of "Atlanta's Top 10 Concerts" ranked by the Atlanta Business Chronicle. By year's end, Philips Arena - with eleven sold out shows and 1,010,153 in reported concert and family show attendance - was ranked No. 7 among venues with 15,000 or more capacity in Amusement Business and Billboard's magazine's 2001 year in review. The following tours made stops at Philips Arena during 2001:

FAMILY AFFAIR
With advanced audio and video technology provided by Royal Philips Electronics, Philips Arena engages children and adults with the Philips Experience, a special area created in the venue's "Thrashers Nest" featuring five interactive exhibits allowing visitors to dunk basketballs, e-mail pictures, surf the Internet and play the latest sports video games.

Further captivating crowds were religious evangelists Benny Hinn and Joyce Meyer who each held conventions attracting people in the tens of thousands. International evangelist Joyce Meyer received an audience of 35,000 persons during her three-day conference.

In a 2001 year end poll, AtlantaCitySearch.com readers and editors voted Philips Arena as the "Best Place to spend New Year's Eve," once again validating the venue's presence as the center and focus of the Atlanta community. Rounding out the local accolades, Philips Arena was named "Best Large Venue for Live Music" by readers and editors of Atlanta Magazine.

During 2001, Philips Arena hosted a variety of specialty and family shows including:

To improve access to almost two million visitors per year, Philips Arena partnered with Ticketmaster to launch "Ticketfast," a computerized admission access system allowing fans to buy tickets online and print a bar-coded receipt for immediate access.

Behind the scenes, Philips Arena also won several video production honors for projects completed during 2001. Philips Arena/Atlanta Hawks won the "Best Overall Video Display/Basketball" award for the second year in a row at this year's Golden Matrix Awards at the IDEA conference. Philips Arena was also a finalist in three other categories: Best Mascot Video ("Behind the Mascot - Hawks"), Best Music Video ("Right Now - Hawks"), and Best In Game Feature ("Penalty Box Skits - Thrashers").

Philips Arena, whose operating company is a subsidiary of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., an AOL Time Warner Company, is online at www.PhilipsArena.com.

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