OWN Launches 'Oprah's Thank You Game' on Facebook

OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network and Oprah.com announced today the launch of "Oprah's Thank You Game" on Facebook facebook.com/owntv to spread gratitude around the world in an effort to thank half a billion people worldwide. The game launches in conjunction with the season finale of "Oprah's Lifeclass: the Tour" airing tonight (Monday, April 30 at 8 p.m. ET/PT) where Oprah discusses mastering the art of gratitude.

OWN has partnered with world-renowned alternate reality game designer Jane McGonigal, PhD, developer of SuperBetter, who created and designed an interactive way to encourage and display gratitude. McGonigal's research on the science of social networks and the contagious nature of gratitude shows that one properly executed "thank you" can reach up to 258 people. Players will be educated on how to find the benefit, acknowledge the effort and spot the strength when making a thank you, then encouraged to share their success on OWN and Oprah's Facebook pages by clicking the "I Said Thank You" button to visually see how many people around the world are participating in expressing gratitude through heat map technology.

"This game is a great way to harness the power of social media to spread the message of gratitude to people all over the world," said Sheri Salata, president, OWN. "If we can focus on sharing our gratitude with our friends, family and online communities, imagine the shift in consciousness that is possible."

"Oprah's Thank You Game shows how just by playing a game, you can do real-world good. We're creating the biggest gratitude network in history. Our collective goal is to spread gratitude to half a billion people worldwide," said Jane McGonigal, chief creative officer, SuperBetter Labs.

A daily challenge will post via OWN's Twitter and will be available on the Oprah's Thank You Game Facebook app including, "Thank" someone who gave you an opportunity, someone who is having a hard day, someone who wouldn't expect it, or someone you've known a really long time. Players can share in the conversation on Twitter using @OWNTV or #ThankYouGame. Other elements include "What's New" blog posts and "Gratitude Secrets" where users can discover the 12 secrets of gratitude. Players also have the option to enter their email address for the chance to receive a personal thank you from Oprah Winfrey.