UK Pop Sensation One Direction Set to Perform Live at Nickelodeon's 25th Annual Kids' Choice Awards Hosted by Will Smith on Saturday, March 31

SANTA MONICA, Calif., March 2, 2012 -- On the heels of making their US performance debut while on tour with Nickelodeon's Big Time Rush, One Direction, who are already an international pop sensation, has been confirmed to perform at Nickelodeon's 25th Annual Kids' Choice Awards on Saturday, March 31st at 8:00 p.m. ET. The band will also host Saturday nights on Nick throughout March, giving viewers exclusive behind-the-scenes access to the boys as they tour with Big Time Rush. One Direction will be sharing stories, secrets and music from the road, leading into the world premiere of the Nickelodeon original television movie event, Big Time Movie on Saturday, March 10 at 8:00 p.m.

"One Direction is performing on the Kids' Choice Awards for the first time and it's going to be scream-worthy," said Paula Kaplan, an Executive Producer of the Kids' Choice Awards. "While on tour with Big Time Rush, we have seen their popularity explode, and we are excited to introduce them to our audience during the month of March with exclusive access to the guys leading up to our biggest event of the year."

One Direction will perform their debut single "What Makes You Beautiful" at the Kids' Choice Awards, joining host Will Smith for the star-studded event airing live from University of Southern California's Galen Center in Los Angeles, where kids will honor their favorite celebrities spanning the worlds of film, music, TV and sports. The X Factor group's debut single "What Makes You Beautiful," recently won a BRIT Award for Best British Single, with the music video garnering over 61 million views on VEVO and had more than 132,000 downloads in its first week in the USA. It is also the highest Billboard HOT 100 debut for a UK act in over 14 years since the Verve and they are also the last UK group to chart so high since the Spice Girls.

Most recently, One Direction featuring Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan taped an episode of the Nickelodeon hit comedy series iCarly, entitled "iGot Jungle Worms," which is set to premiere later this year.

One Direction will debut their album Up All Night in the US on March 13, 2012. Up All Night is already a global success entering the charts at #1 in 6 countries including Sweden and Italy and top ten in 12 more and has been certified triple platinum in Ireland, double platinum in the UK and platinum in New Zealand & Australia.

One Direction joined Big Time Rush's "Better With U Tour" on February 24th in Chicago and their US debut kicked-off with the highly successful grassroots BRING1D2US online campaign which saw the band break records with social media platforms Twitition and Twibbon. The campaign engaged thousands of fans across America to complete weekly challenges for a chance to win the Grand Prize of a special 1D event in their city.

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Nickelodeon, now in its 32nd year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books and feature films. Nickelodeon's U.S. television network is seen in more than 100 million households and has been the number-one-rated basic cable network for 17 consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB).

SYCO & THE X FACTOR

Syco Entertainment is a joint venture between Simon Cowell and Sony Music. Syco's television assets include the global franchises The X Factor and Got Talent. THE X FACTOR was created by Syco Television and is produced by Syco Television and FremantleMedia.

Local versions of The X Factor are produced in more than 40 territories and the US version of The X Factor airs in over 162 countries. Artists discovered by The X Factor format have sold more than 100 million records worldwide, including 110 number ones, 270 top 10, and 501 top 50 releases.

The X Factor launched in 2004 in the UK. Airing on ITV1, The X Factor has been the number one show in the UK for eight years, with the 2010 finale achieving a peak of 21.2 million viewers, and a 65% share. The 2011 finale, held at Wembley Arena in front of a live audience of 12,000, was the most watched TV show of the year, with a bigger audience than the Royal Wedding.

The X Factor in the US launched in fall 2011, on Fox, immediately becoming the number one unscripted show of the season. The show delivered a 12% share of viewing among adults between the ages of 18 and 49, and was watched by an average of 12.6 million viewers, winning the night on almost every occasion. The show delivered a boost to Fox's ratings on Wednesdays and Thursdays of 52% and 40% on the previous year, giving the network the number one slot on those nights for the first time in its history. The X Factor also gave Fox victory in the November "sweep" among adults aged 18 to 49.

Syco Music the record label home for such diverse international recording artists as Labrinth, One Direction, Leona Lewis, Susan Boyle and Il Divo. Syco Music works in partnership with other Sony Music labels to launch the careers of many artists discovered through The X Factor series, including in the UK; JLS, Olly Murs, Diana Vickers, Alexandra Burke, Matt Cardle, Rebecca Ferguson, One Direction and Cher Lloyd.