By Alex Woodson

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - "South Park" creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker have signed an unprecedented production deal with Viacom guaranteeing the duo a 50-50 split of ad revenue and a stand-alone Web presence as part of a three-year contract extension, according to a report published Monday in the New York Times.

The deal, which will guarantee Parker and Stone about $75 million over the next four years, will foster the creation of SouthParkStudios.com. The Web site will feature new applications for the characters on the Comedy Central hit and is intended "to spread 'South Park'-related material across the Net, mobile platforms and video games."

The new contract was agreed upon in part because Parker and Stone had signed their deal before the advent of sites like Google's YouTube, which has spread noncopyrighted "South Park" clips throughout the Web to the dismay of Viacom. The duo had previously expressed frustration that their show, the highest-rated offering on Comedy Central, had no digital home.

As opposed to News Corp., NBC Universal and CBS Corp., which have more actively created online homes for their hit shows, Viacom has been slower to enact its digital strategy. The conglomerate sued YouTube in March and has not partnered with traditional Web distribution sources, instead partnering with Joost, a downloadable startup Web TV application.

The deal with Parker and Stone also gives the two "considerable raises" and "millions in upfront cash," the report added.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
© Copyright 2007 Reuters.

Photo:
Matt Stone (L) and Trey Parker, creators of the television animated series "South Park", arrive for the South Park The Tenth Season party in Los Angeles September 21, 2006. Stone and Parker have signed an unprecedented production deal with Viacom guaranteeing the duo a 50-50 split of ad revenue and a stand-alone Web presence as part of a three-year contract extension, according to a report published Monday in the New York Times. REUTERS/Fred Prouser