Multi-Year Relationship to include First-Ever Co-Branded Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade® Float Featuring a Performance from Grammy®-Award Winning Artist Cee-Lo Green
NEW YORK & RIVERWOODS, Ill., Nov 02, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) and the National Hockey League (NHL) today announced the intention to renew a multi-year sponsorship agreement naming Discover as an Official Partner of the NHL® in the U.S.
As part of this agreement, Discover will become title sponsor of the inaugural NHL on NBC broadcast on Thanksgiving Friday, now titled the 2011 Discover NHL Thanksgiving Showdown(TM). This broadcast launches NBC's coverage of the NHL for the season, making it the earliest NHL regular season broadcast on national U.S. television in more than 20 years. In promotion for this game, featuring the Boston Bruins hosting the Detroit Red Wings (1:00 pm ET, NBC), Discover and the NHL also will introduce a co-branded float titled "Frozen Fall Fun," which will make its first-ever appearance in this year's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
The float, featuring a live performance of Grammy-Award winning artist Cee-Lo Green, is 36-feet long by 20-feet wide and is designed to reflect a fall hockey theme. Also created to showcase the Discover and NHL partnership, the float will feature NHL stars from the past, a synthetic ice rink, a 12-foot tall turkey that serves as a hockey goal, plus an assortment of colorful fall décor.
"Having a new ownership platform on a day that is synonymous with shopping was a natural fit to renew our partnership with Discover, but we wanted to make it even bigger," said David Lehanski, group vice president of integrated sales. The idea of incorporating a float in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade gives us a unique way to not only promote this partnership, but also the 2011 Discover NHL Thanksgiving Showdown in front of an audience that traditionally reaches nearly 50 million viewers."
The commitment to the NHL will deepen Discover's investment in hockey, giving the company increased opportunities to engage with U.S. hockey fans nationwide and develop exclusive hockey-themed rewards and experiences across various NHL special events.
"We're proud to work with our partners at the NHL to participate in some of America's favorite holiday traditions, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and watching a great hockey match-up on NBC," said Jennifer Murillo, vice president of brand communications for Discover.
Throughout the NHL season, Discover will offer opportunities for cardmembers to redeem their Cashback® Bonus rewards for tickets to the 2012 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic® in Philadelphia. Discover cardmembers also receive discounts to Shop.NHL.com and the NHL Powered by Reebok store in New York City, NHL GameCenter Live(TM) subscriptions, and more.
Discover will remain the Official Card of the NHL, NHL All-Star Weekend, NHL Winter Classic, NHL Awards(TM) and the NHL Draft(TM).
Discover Launches Two New Ads Featuring Patrick Kane and Tim Thomas
As a tie-in to its NHL sponsorship, Discover also launched two new national television ads yesterday featuring the popular Peggy character along with Blackhawks center Patrick Kane (http://video.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=1083&id=131938) and Boston Bruins goalie Tim Thomas (http://video.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=1083&id=131939). Both 30-second spots showcase each player's frustration as they face some of the challenges consumers face when calling their card's customer service departments. The television ads highlight Discover's award-winning customer service while positioning Peggy, a likable, but incapable customer service representative of the fictitious U.S.A. Prime Credit Company, as a person who frustrates callers with long hold times, excessive transfers and the inability to solve problems. The new ads are a follow-up to the "Peggy" ad Discover launched earlier this year that featured curator of the Hockey Hall of Fame and Stanley Cup® handler Phil Pritchard.
About the NHL
The National Hockey League, founded in 1917, is the second-oldest of the four major professional team sports leagues in North America. Today, the NHL® consists of 30 Member Clubs, each reflecting the League's international makeup, with players from more than 20 countries represented on team rosters. According to a Simmons Market Research study, NHL fans are younger, more educated, more affluent, and access content through digital means more than any other major professional sport. The NHL entertains more than 250 million fans each season in-arena and through its partners in national television (VERSUS, NBC, TSN, CBC, RDS, RIS, MTG and NHL Network(TM)) and radio (NHL Radio(TM), Sirius XM Satellite Radio). Through the NHL Foundation, the League's charitable arm, the NHL raises money and awareness for Hockey Fights Cancer(TM) and NHL Youth Development, and supports the charitable efforts of NHL players. For more information on the NHL, log on to NHL.com.
About Discover
Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) is a direct banking and payment services company with one of the most recognized brands in U.S. financial services. Since its inception in 1986, the company has become one of the largest card issuers in the United States. The company operates the Discover card, America's cash rewards pioneer, and offers personal and student loans, online savings accounts, certificates of deposit and money market accounts through its Discover Bank subsidiary. Its payment businesses consist of Discover Network, with millions of merchant and cash access locations; PULSE, one of the nation's leading ATM/debit networks; and Diners Club International, a global payments network with acceptance in more than 185 countries and territories. For more information, visit http://www.discoverfinancial.com.
NHL, the NHL Shield, Stanley Cup, and the word mark NHL Winter Classic are registered trademarks and NHL Thanksgiving Showdown name and logo, Frozen Fall Fun, NHL GameCenter LIVE, NHL Awards and NHL Entry Draft are trademarks of the National Hockey League. NHL and NHL team marks are the property of the NHL and its teams. All Rights Reserved.
SOURCE: Discover Financial Services
NHL
Kerry McGovern, 212-789-2172
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or
Discover
Matt Towson, 224-405-5649
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