Singapore, 26 October 2007 - omy (www.omy.sg), Singapore’s first bilingual news and interactive web portal by leading media group Singapore Press Holdings Ltd (SPH), celebrated its first month anniversary yesterday with impressive results: The site has achieved over 5 million pageviews within the first month* of its launch, which is higher than its initial target of 3 million pageviews!

The Eat! (http://eat.omy.sg) section of omy has also consistently ranked Number 1 in Hitwise’s Food & Beverages category** for Singapore websites since omy was launched on 25 September, 2007. In this section, users can do a bilingual search in either Chinese or English to find their favourite food in Singapore. The section currently has over 600 articles covering more than 1,500 dishes, and is still growing by the day. For those who prefer visual excitement, there is a vodcast series uploaded weekly, featuring famous food connoisseurs like Alan Ng from Lianhe Zaobao.

Ms Han Yong May, News Editor of omy, said: "It is a pleasant surprise that our food section is so well-received. We inherited the content from SPH’s Chinese publications which provided us with a strong foundation to start with. Moving forward, following the spirit of Web 2.0, we will include more interactive elements and invite users’ contributions."

Mr Chua Chim Kang, Editor of omy, said "The strong support from omy users show that we have found the right formula to attract and connect with our users. omy will continue to strengthen its leading position as a user-friendly bilingual platform, serving users with interesting and innovative content."

To reward the public for their support, omy will be running an online contest, The Midas Click, inviting everyone to predict omy’s exact pageviews figure by 31 October, 2007. The winner gets to walk away with a XBOX 360 gaming console.

Targeted at online users from 18 to 35 years old, omy is easy to navigate, even for users unfamiliar with surfing Chinese sites on the Internet. It engages users through various new media channels that they are familiar with -- via SMS, MMS, vodcast, podcast, Internet forum and blogs. omy empowers users by providing an interactive platform for them to share their views and opinions with other users, as well as with the omy editorial team.

For those who prefer visuals to text, omy offers an interesting range of vodcasts on current issues, lifestyle, fashion, beauty, cars, shopping and showbiz. There are also exciting online games for those who like challenges, and other interactive features such as geoblogging (blogging based on geographical locations), bilingual forums and sections for users to submit their own videos and photographs.

Source: (*Nielsen NetRatings, 25 October 2007) (**Hitwise, 25 October 2007)

More on omy

There are 12 sections in omy, including news, citizen journalism, showbiz, My Lifestyle, Eat!, Multimedia, Playground, Showtime, Y-zone, Forum, Blog and Lobang.

News

It offers the hottest local and international news of the day. omy, in addition to its own editorial team, also has the strong backing of SPH’s group of Chinese newspapers in terms of its content.

Citizen Journalism

omy users are encouraged to become an editorial staff by submitting news leads or photographs to the bilingual site.

Showbiz

From the hottest news in the entertainment scene to the latest movie trailers and music reviews, Showbiz has it all.

My Lifestyle

Vodcasts on the latest fashion, beauty, IT, Cars, shopping and other lifestyle trends are uploaded.

Eat!

A section on eating places and food including vodcasts and articles. There is also a food search function using names of dishes and venues as key words.

Multimedia

A one-stop media centre for users who are looking for visual content. All the vodcasts, podcasts and photo galleries are "housed" and archived here.

Lobang

Powered by Google Earth, this section offers users a virtual map of Singapore to share all their "lobangs" such as food reviews, bloggers’ and users’ comments on the latest happenings.

Showtime

Users can submit their videos and photos here to be rated by other users.

Playground

Living up to its name, this cyber playground offers 100 free-to-play online flash games which are constantly updated. Fans of English Premier League soccer matches can participate in the score prediction game where users earn points to exchange for prizes. There are also daily horoscope readings.

Y-Zone

This is a newsroom managed by student journalists from various tertiary institutions. They will write on youth topics for the younger users.

Blogs

Blogs of your various omy journalists can be found here, as well as celebrity blogs such as David Gan who offers hairstyling tips. You can also find blogs of various celebrity fan clubs from Jay Chou, S.H.E and Wang Lee Hom.

Forum

A place for users to air their views in both English and Chinese.

Issued by Singapore Press Holdings Limited
Co. Regn. No: 198402868E

For more information, please contact:

Alvin Lim
Online Marketing Executive
omy
Singapore Press Holdings Limited
Tel: 6319 2490
Email: limlh@sph.com.sg

Selina Esther Lim
Assistant Manager
Corporate Communications
Singapore Press Holdings Limited
Tel: 6319 1872
Email: limyl@sph.com.sg

About Singapore Press Holdings Ltd

Newspapers and Magazines
Main board-listed Singapore Press Holdings Ltd (SPH) is the leading media company in Singapore, delivering news and information through print, Internet and broadcasting platforms. In Singapore, it publishes 14 newspapers in four languages. Every day, 2.9 million individuals or 81 percent of people above 15 years old, read one of SPH’s news publications. SPH also publishes over 90 magazine titles in Singapore and the region, covering a broad range of interests from lifestyle to information technology.

Internet and Mobile
Beyond print, the Internet editions of SPH newspapers enjoy over 110 million pageviews with 7 million unique visitors every month. Apart from SPH AsiaOne portal, SPH’s online and new media initiatives include a revolutionary mobile advertising and information service, ZapCode; online marketplace for products, services and employment, ST701; and STOMP (Straits Times Online Mobile Print), a portal that connects, engages and interacts with readers on the Web and via mobile phone messaging.

Broadcasting
SPH has a 20 percent stake in MediaCorp TV Holdings Pte Ltd, which operates free-to-air channels 5, 8, U and TV Mobile, and a 40 percent stake in MediaCorp Press Pte Ltd, which publishes the free newspaper, Today. In the radio business, SPH has a 80 percent stake in SPH UnionWorks Pte Ltd, which operates entertainment stations Radio 100.3 FM in Mandarin and Radio 91.3 FM in English.

Outdoor Advertising
In addition, SPH has ventured into outdoor advertising through its wholly-owned subsidiary, SPH MediaBoxOffice Pte Ltd, Singapore´s largest outdoor motion display advertising network media company, and a 35 percent stake in TOM Outdoor Media Group, a leading outdoor advertising company in China.

Properties
SPH owns and manages Paragon, the prime retail and office complex in the heart of Orchard Road, Singapore’s main shopping belt. SPH’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Times Development Pte Ltd, is also developing a 43-storey upmarket residential condominium, Sky@eleven, at Thomson Road.