FOX BROADCASTING COMPANY AND FREMANTLEMEDIA ANNOUNCE SPONSORS FOR FOURTH SEASON OF "AMERICAN IDOL"
Ford Motor Company, Coca-Cola and Cingular Wireless Return as Official Sponsors of Television's No. 1 Show
Fox Broadcasting Company (FOX) and FremantleMedia, one of the largest international creators and producers of program brands in the world, today announced the sponsors for the fourth season of AMERICAN IDOL, which premiered to a record-breaking 65.6 million viewers on Tuesday, Jan. 18 and Wednesday, Jan. 19. AMERICAN IDOL-Tuesday and AMERICAN IDOL-Wednesday rank as the No. 1- and No. 2-rated programs of the season (out of 163 regular series on the 6-nets) among Adults 18-49, Adults 18-34 and Teens.
FOX and FremantleMedia Licensing Americas (FMLA), the licensing division of FremantleMedia, have re-teamed with Ford Motor Company, Coca-Cola and Cingular Wireless as official sponsors of this year's AMERICAN IDOL.
Season four of AMERICAN IDOL marks the return of the Ford Motor Company as a major sponsor. Ford has been a leading supporter of AMERICAN IDOL since the show's debut in 2002, and will continue to have a strong presence again in the fourth season. Ford vehicles will again be featured during the "Idol" action, as contestants will be seen driving and riding in a variety of the automaker's cars, trucks and SUVs. AMERICAN IDOL will serve as the key platform to integrate Ford's next generation of all-new vehicles, all built for the road ahead, including the 2005 Focus, Mustang, Freestyle and Escape. Ford will also give the winner of AMERICAN IDOL the keys to a true American legend, the 2005 Ford Mustang. Ford is the Official Automotive Sponsor.
Associated with the phenomenon of AMERICAN IDOL since the beginning, Coca-Cola is also back again for the fourth season. A variety of branded elements and programs will connect Coca-Cola and fans of the show, while helping to bring them closer to the AMERICAN IDOL experience.
AMERICAN IDOL contestants will interact and prepare in an updated version of the popular Red Room. A series of Coca-Cola behind-the-scenes interstitials will provide viewers an insider's perspective on what contestants experience as they work to Make the Dream Real. During commercial breaks, viewers will also see Coca-Cola ads from the new "Make It Real" campaign, which debuted during the show's season premiere. Other activities designed to provide consumers with a completely integrated AMERICAN IDOL experience are planned for a variety of retail outlets where Coca-Cola is available.
Having recently joined forces with AT&T Wireless, Cingular Wireless is poised to deliver another season of compelling wireless applications for AMERICAN IDOL fans. As AMERICAN IDOL's Official Telecom Sponsor, Cingular will highlight the suite of LG phones including the new F9100 handset, the perfect text voting phone from LG Mobile Phones, and showcase interactive text messaging through a variety of fun and engaging marketing activities. Fans can use their wireless handsets to text message their vote for their favorite contestants each week, chat with contestants, play interactive games, download ringtones and graphics and participate in weekly trivia contests, as well as enter the AMERICAN IDOL sweepstakes. New to the scene is Cingular's Fan Club Appreciation. Details of this new program will be shared later in the season, so stay tuned!
Keep watching next week for all-new audition episodes as the remaining contestants in Hollywood compete for a chance at the AMERICAN IDOL crown on Tuesday, Feb. 15 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) and Wednesday, Feb. 16 (9:00�10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX.
Eight-time Emmy-nominated AMERICAN IDOL is created and executive-produced by Simon Fuller, founder of 19 Television; and executive-produced by Cecile Frot-Coutaz, Chief Operating Officer, Production, FremantleMedia North America Inc.; Nigel Lythgoe, President, 19 Television; and Ken Warwick, Executive Producer, FremantleMedia North America, Inc.
About FremantleMedia
FremantleMedia Licensing Americas (FMLA) is the U.S. licensing arm of FremantleMedia, one of the largest international creators and producers of program brands in the world, with leading primetime drama, serial drama, entertainment and factual entertainment programming in over 40 territories. FMLA exploits FremantleMedia's many strong brands, including the award-winning AMERICAN IDOL, the world's longest-running game show "The Price Is Right," the ever-popular "Family Feud" and other classic game shows across multiple off-screen platforms, including merchandising campaigns, interactive and wireless support, home entertainment and music publishing.
About 19 Entertainment
19 is recognized as a leading creator, provider and promoter of globally successful, music-based entertainment, or "Entertainment Brands." 19 has attracted a unique collection of expertise in people who work together to integrate and leverage activity across television, music, film, merchandising, music publishing, recording, artist/writer and producer management, sponsorship and promotion. To date, 19 has been involved in the creation of 101 No. 1 singles and 81 No. 1 albums, with an impressive tally of 233 Top 40 albums and 389 Top 40 singles.
About Ford
Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, MI, manufactures and distributes automobiles in 200 markets across six continents. With more than 327,000 employees and 110 plants worldwide, the company's core and affiliated automotive brands include Aston Martin, Ford, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lincoln, Mazda, Mercury and Volvo. Its automotive-related services include Ford Motor Credit Company and Hertz. For more information regarding Ford's products, please visit www.fordvehicles.com.
About Coca-Cola
The Coca-Cola Company is the world's largest beverage company, marketing four of the world's top five soft drink brands, including the No. 1 soft drink, Coca-Cola. Consumers in nearly 200 countries enjoy The Coca-Cola Company's products at a rate of more than 1 billion servings each day. For more information about The Coca-Cola Company, visit www.coca-cola.com.
About Cingular
Cingular Wireless is the largest wireless carrier in the United States, serving more than 49 million customers. Cingular, a joint venture between SBC Communications (NYSE: SBC) and BellSouth (NYSE: BLS), has the largest digital voice and data network in the nation. Cingular is the only U.S. wireless carrier to offer RolloverSM, the wireless plan that lets customers keep their unused monthly minutes. Details of the company are available at www.cingular.com.
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