New York City And Key Leading Marketing Partners Launch Newest Global Tourism Advertising Campaign

NEW YORK CITY AND KEY LEADING MARKETING PARTNERS LAUNCH NEWEST GLOBAL TOURISM ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN

Nation�s Number One Tourist Destination to Aggressively Promote City, Drive Visitation, and Protect and Enhance NYC�s Multi-Billion Dollar Tourism Industry

New York City (June 24, 2010) �NYC & Company�the City�s official marketing, tourism and partnership organization�today announced the launch of a multi-faceted marketing campaign for New York City. Underwritten and supported by leading U.S. companies, the innovative and resourceful yearlong campaign is the evolution of the city�s 2007 global marketing efforts�the tagline �See More. Be More. This is New York City.� is designed to showcase the unsurpassed energy, excitement and diversity of 2009�s number one US tourist destination. The new campaign will be seen across the country and in multiple destinations throughout the world, and include promotional packages from leading corporate partners, including American Express, American Airlines and Travelocity, among others. The efforts are expected to provide even more momentum to a tourism industry that employs more than 308,000 New Yorkers and generates $28 billion plus in economic impact.

�Today�s launch is exciting news for New York City tourism, one of the City�s strongest industries,� said NYC & Company CEO George Fertitta. �Our goal is to let the world know just how vibrant New York City is and remains. This innovative campaign model relies on external resources and will ensure our message reaches a global audience and keep New York City the country�s top destination.�

The campaign is exemplary of the innovative NYC & Company business model created by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg in 2006. Through a structure of bartered/donated media and cash�similar to other recent NYC & Company public-private partnerships which have launched using little to no taxpayer dollars�the campaign is valued at $30 million. Whereas other destinations in New York City�s competitive set rely on massive advertising budgets derived from public funding, the NYC & Company civic-marketing model generates greater impact at relatively minimal public cost.

�This campaign builds upon many of our previous efforts,� said Jane Reiss, NYC & Company�s executive vice president and chief marketing officer. �Once again, we fully expect to continue our growth and use the breadth of this program to reach entirely new audiences.�

The new campaign will highlight the City�s five boroughs through vibrant and colorful imagery targeted to an even larger domestic and worldwide audience. A variety of advertising and promotional efforts�outdoor, print and digital�will run in several U.S. cities, including Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., as well as international markets Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy and the United Kingdom.

�Our campaign intends to evoke the excitement of one's first experience in the City,� said Willy Wong, NYC & Company�s chief creative officer. �When we engage with consumers from across the globe, we want them to reflect on the feeling of personal transformation that lingers long after a trip to NYC ends. The art reflects the energy, diversity and passion of the city and will hopefully inspire a sense optimism for future visits.�

The campaign is expected to reach the widest audience ever for any city program with elements capturing the energy and excitement of the City such as new See More, Be More advertisements and television brand spot; a microsite at nycgo.com/getmorenyc with new travel itineraries (Family, Gay, One Day, Two Day and Shopping); and social media engagement with Twitter (@nycgo) and Facebook (facebook.com/nycgo.com), including a new Facebook game that identifies the kind of New Yorker a visitor is.

Promotional packages from corporate partners include: Double Membership Reward Points for American Express Cardmembers at 500 locations citywide when they register their card at nycgo.com/getmorenyc between July 1 and September 5, 2010; an American Airlines roundtrip sweepstakes and special flight deals; Travelocity, who powers NYC & Company�s booking engine, will provide consumers with travel deals via an nycgo.com widget and a five-borough focused Travelocity Roaming Gnome� itinerary. Additional corporate offerings are available and a full listing can be found at nycgo.com/getmorenyc.

�American Express is extremely proud to be long-standing partners with an innovative, forward-thinking organization such as NYC & Company in order to help the vitality of our great city,� said Lisa Skiptunis, vice president, American Express Merchant Services. �This new campaign is another fantastic opportunity to reach our cardmembers and provide them with unique benefits for supporting merchants in New York City.�

�Once again, American Airlines is delighted to partner with NYC & Company in our joint goal of increasing the number of travelers to New York City, one of the top destinations in the world,� said Art Torno, Vice President - New York, for American Airlines. ��The Get More NYC campaign will drive more visitors to New York, and we're excited to be working closely with NYC & Company to make this happen and further strengthen one of the key U.S. cornerstone markets in our global network."

�We�re proud to be part of this global initiative on behalf of NYC & Company,� said Victoria Treyger, chief marketing officer, Travelocity. �It�s no secret that the Roaming Gnome is a huge fan of New York City and we�re looking forward to doing our part in promoting all of the unique elements of this world class destination.�

NYC & Company forecasts that New York City will welcome 47.1 million visitors in 2010�the City is still on track to reach Mayor Michael Bloomberg�s goal of 50 million annual visitors by 2012. NYC became the most popular U.S. travel destination in 2009 and has grown its international market share from 28% to 34% since 2006.

About NYC & Company: NYC & Company: NYC & Company is the official marketing, tourism and partnership organization for the City of New York, dedicated to maximizing travel and tourism opportunities throughout the five boroughs, building economic prosperity and spreading the positive image of New York City worldwide. For more information on visiting the destination, go to nycgo.com.

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