Volume 7 Of Hit Manga Series Declared A Winner Of "Consumer's Choice" Literary Award To Honor Excellence In Writing And Publishing

San Francisco, CA, October 11, 2006 — VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the entertainment industry's most innovative and comprehensive publishing, animation and licensing companies, has announced that Shonen Jump NARUTO Vol. 7 has won the 2006 Quill Award for Best Graphic Novel, a first for any manga.

The Quills Award is an initiative launched with the combined support of Reed Business Information and NBC, and is designed to act as an industry qualified "consumers choice" program to honor excellence in writing and publishing, recognizing the creators of great literature, and promoting reading and literacy initiatives. The Quill Awards celebrates the best books of the year in nineteen popular categories, ranging from romance to biography to graphic novels. The winners were announced at the Quill Awards Ceremony last night in New York City.

NARUTO has become one of VIZ Media's most successful manga properties in terms of sales. The series, by creator Masashi Kishimoto, depicts the adventures of a young boy who trains to become a ninja and has sold more than 66 million copies in Japan since Shueisha Inc began publishing the manga in 1999. In North America, the massive amount of fan interest in the brand continues to build.

NARUTO has emerged as one of the best selling and most popular manga series throughout North America, regularly placing in both Graphic Novel and Overall General Fiction categories on noted literary sales rosters including BookScan and the USA Today Top 150. Momentum for the property has persisted as the NARUTO anime counterpart (also distributed by VIZ Media) continues to captivate millions of viewers on Cartoon Network.

"We are extremely pleased to have been honored with the 2006 Quill Award in the Graphic Novel category for NARUTO," states Hidemi Fukuhara, CEO, VIZ Media. "The Quill Award is very special to us as it is a consumer voted award and reflects fan favorites as well as buying trends and also serves as an accolade for the manga genre as a whole and NARUTO specifically."

About VIZ Media, LLC

Headquartered in San Francisco, CA, VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), is one of the most comprehensive and innovative companies in the field of manga publishing, animation and entertainment licensing of Japanese content. Owned by three of Japan's largest creators and licensors of manga and animation, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and Shogakukan Production Co., Ltd. (ShoPro Japan), VIZ Media is a leader in the publishing and distribution of Japanese manga for English speaking audiences in North America and a global licensor of Japanese manga and animation. The company offers an integrated product line including, magazines such as SHONEN JUMP and SHOJO BEAT, graphic novels, videos, DVDs, audio soundtracks and develops and markets animated entertainment from initial production, television placement and distribution, to merchandise licensing and promotions for audiences and consumers of all ages.

Contact VIZ Media at 295 Bay Street, San Francisco, CA 94133; Phone (415) 546–7073; Fax (415) 546–7086; and web site at www.viz.com.

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