NASCAR Nextel Cup Series Highlights Available on the iTunes Music Store

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.--Feb. 1, 20067, 2006--The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) today announced that highlights and exclusive behind-the-scenes coverage from NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series races throughout the 2006 season will be available for purchase and download from the iTunes Music Store (www.itunes.com).

The coverage, provided by NASCAR Images, the exclusive content provider for NASCAR, will be available beginning with the Daytona 500, which begins the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series season on Sunday, February 19 (NBC, 1:30 p.m.) Racing fans can download a free preview of the Daytona 500 now, and in the week following each race, will be able to purchase a race review and other exclusive coverage for $1.99.

NASCAR, which is the second highest-rated regular season sport on television and has seen TV audience growth of nearly 80% over the past 15 years, will produce the itunes previews and reviews with unique content designed to drive fans to the race telecasts and complement those telecasts. In the U.S., there are 75 million NASCAR fans, including 30 million women.

"For the past several years, NASCAR has been developing content for race fans at the track, in their homes and on the go," said Dick Glover, Vice President of Broadcasting and New Media at NASCAR. "iTunes provides an innovative way for us to reach NASCAR fans, and puts NASCAR fans 'inside the helmet', providing unparalleled access to the sport and its competitors."

NASCAR has won several Emmy awards for its new media applications and was judged in 2004 by media executives as having made the best media enhancements during TV broadcasts of all major sports, according to the Turnkey Sports Poll. NASCAR is also a pioneer in using podcasts to provide information to media to help them cover the sport.

With Apple's legendary ease of use, pioneering features such as integrated video and Podcasting support, iMix playlist sharing, seamless integration with iPod and groundbreaking personal use rights, the iTunes Music Store is the best way for Mac and PC users to legally discover, purchase and download music and videos online.

The iTunes Music Store features a selection of over 3,000 music videos, Pixar and Disney short films, a variety of hit TV shows, and more than two million songs from the major music companies and over 1,000 independent labels.

Pricing & Availability

iTunes 6 for Mac and Windows includes the iTunes Music Store and is available as a free download from www.apple.com/itunes (www.itunes.com). Purchase and download of songs and videos from the iTunes Music Store requires a valid credit card with a billing address in the country of purchase. Television shows are available in the US only, and video availability varies by country. Television shows are $1.99 (US) per episode, and music videos and short films are $1.99 (US) each.

About NASCAR

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, Inc. (NASCAR), which began in 1948, is the sanctioning body for one of America's premier sports. NASCAR is the #1 spectator sport - holding 17 of the top 20 attended sporting events in the U.S., and has 75 million fans who purchase over $2 billion in annual licensed product sales. These fans are the most brand loyal in all of sports and as a result, more Fortune 500 companies participate in NASCAR than any other sport.

NASCAR consists of three major national series (NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series, NASCAR Busch Series and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series) as well as eight regional series and one local grassroots series. NASCAR sanctions 1,500 races at over 100 tracks in 38 states, Canada and Mexico. Based in Daytona Beach (Fla.), NASCAR has offices in Bentonville (Ark.), Charlotte (N.C.), Concord (N.C.), Conover (N.C.), Los Angeles, New York, Mexico City and Toronto.