South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone have agreed to a three-season extension for cable's top-rated animated series and entered into a joint venture with COMEDY CENTRAL to create South Park Digital Studios, it was announced today by Doug Herzog, president, MTV Networks' Entertainment Group, a division of Viacom's MTV Networks. The strategic alliance includes the formation of a digital animation studio at South Park headquarters in Los Angeles that will serve as the new home for all digital extensions of the South Park franchise as well as an incubator for new animated projects.

As part of the agreement, Parker and Stone will produce an additional three seasons (14 episodes per season) of South Park, taking the series beyond its current deal, which was set to expire at the end of 2008, to keep new episodes of the show on COMEDY CENTRAL through 2011. Parker and Stone will continue to write, direct and edit every episode of South Park, as they have since the premiere of the series in August 1997.

The joint venture of South Park Digital Studios seeks to respond to the new world in a new way. Its goal is to realize fully the potential of the "South Park" franchise and engage fans across all platforms, including exploring opportunities on gaming platforms (console, handheld, online) and a new online home for the series that will create a Web presence equaling the popularity and power of the series' brand. SouthParkStudios.com, the long running official "South Park" fan site, will be expanded and become a major part of the new joint venture. The newly expanded site is scheduled to re- launch during the first quarter of 2008.