London, UK & San Mateo, CA – 17th February, 2006: I-play, the mobile games company, today announced the North American and European launch of Torino 2006(TM) - Official Mobile Phone Game of the Olympic Winter Games .

I-play secured the exclusive license to develop a mobile phone game based on the 2006 Olympic Winter Games in Torino, Italy from International Sports Multimedia Ltd (ISM), exclusive licensee of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for Interactive Entertainment Software. This is the first mobile phone game title ever to be officially licensed by the IOC.

Developed in close cooperation with ISM and the Organising Committee of the Torino 2006 Olympic Winter Games to ensure the authenticity of the game, Torino 2006™ captures the excitement and passion of the 2006 Olympic Winter Games on mobile phone, allowing mobile phone users worldwide to test their skills at a number of disciplines.

The game features four of the signature Olympic Winter Games disciplines: Downhill Skiing, Ski Jumping, Curling and Bobsleigh.
The game’s Downhill Skiing discipline, reflecting the most spectacular Alpine Skiing speciality, involves launching the skier in the ‘tucked up’ position to maximise aerodynamics and efficiency; choosing the shortest trajectories; and flowing through the course as smoothly as possible to maintain maximum velocity, taking care to avoid time penalties due to missed gates.

In Ski Jumping, perfecting the launch is critical in order to get maximum height and distance. Players must fight the wind to keep from veering off-course and focus on the distant landing point. From the heights of the ski-jump, players defy the laws of gravity, using power, precision and nerves of steel. The smallest of errors will compromise the entire jump.

With Curling, the focus is to deliver a smooth granite stone across an expanse of ice with pinpoint precision to the target. To get your player’s team closer to the centre of the target than the opposing team, all four team members must be involved in every shot, with one carefully delivering the stone, two sweeping the ice in front of it to regulate friction, and the skipper calling the strategy.

In the mobile phone game’s Bobsleigh discipline, players must approach the curves just right in order to maintain maximum velocity and score the fastest times! The four-person team pushes the sled for 50 meters – a distance which must be covered in less than 6 seconds to reach a speed of over 40 km/h – before jumping into the sled and reaching for gold. The trick is to handle the course’s many banked curves as smoothly as possible, as each bump against the iced walls adds fractions of a second to the run time.

The game has already received critical acclaim:
Mobile Game Faqs gave the game a Gold Award, saying – “It is clear that a lot of time has been spent to recreate an accurate simulation for all the events.”

David Gosen, acting CEO of I-play commented:
“This is an incredibly exciting title to be releasing, especially given that this will be the first - ever mobile phone game created for an Olympic Games. We are honoured to have been trusted with the most prestigious brand in world sports. Designed for the casual gaming market, this game is one thumb gaming at its best, with real pickup and play appeal. ”

“This release from I-play, Torino 2006™ - The Official Mobile Phone Game of the Olympic Winter Games, is sure to bring the thrills and chills of the 2006 Olympic Winter Games to mobile phones”, said Raymond Goldsmith, Chairman and CEO of ISM.

see www.iplay.com