Hisense signed a multiyear sponsorship agreement with Infiniti Red Bull Racing, the TV maker said in a Friday announcement. The deal “complements” Hisense’s sponsorship agreements with NASCAR in the U.S., the Australian Open tennis tournament and the Schalke 04 soccer team in Germany, it said. Hisense has been the top TV maker in China for 11 straight years, it said. Through its sponsorships, its aim this year is to climb higher among the top five global TV brands and achieve $7.5 billion in revenue in markets outside China, it said.
IHeartMedia created and launched a programmatic and automated advertising buying platform for its broadcast radio stations, it said in a news release Wednesday. It's powered by cloud-platform provider Jelli, iHeartMedia said. The platform will let iHeartMedia offer ad inventory to advertisers and agencies interested in improving the buying process and reducing administrative delays, it said. Through the platform, iHeartMedia will use data sets to target ads, including music-based psychographic groups, weather and traffic patterns, purchase behavior and other trends, it said. IHeartMedia said its Katz Media Group, a national sales firm representing radio broadcasters, also launched Expressway from Katz, a programmatic buying ad exchange for radio, using the same technology.
The 384-outlet 99 Cents Only Stores chain will mark the grand opening Thursday of its new store in Escondido, California, by selling Westinghouse 40-inch LCD TVs for 99 cents each to the first nine customers in line when the new store opens at 8 a.m. PDT, the chain said Tuesday. Additional deals will include the offer of an iron for 99 cents to the next 99 customers, it said. Representatives didn’t comment on the brand and screen size of the LCD TVs being offered.
Northeast supermarket chain ShopRite offered customers discounted iPads Monday in a spring savings email exclusively for delivery customers. The iPad mini 3 in gold is discounted by $70 to $329; the 16 GB iPad Air 2 (silver and gray) slashed by $100 to $399; and the original iPad mini (silver and gray) cut by $50 to $199. The offer is "while supplies last" and isn’t valid in-store or on ShopRite at home orders, the fine print said. Prices for the units at Best Buy Monday weren't discounted.
In its role as NCAA corporate partner, LG said it would hold a “Beyond the Arc” trivia event in New York Tuesday night to raise funds for the Battier Take Charge Foundation. LG is launching the tweet-to-give campaign with former Duke and NBA basketball player Shane Battier, co-founder of the foundation. During the event, and through the remainder of the tournament, LG will donate $3 each time #LGTrivia is used, with the goal of raising $20,000 for the foundation's scholarship program, which awards four-year college scholarships to deserving young leaders from the Detroit, Houston and Miami areas, said LG. Fans can participate and help drive donations using #LGTrivia and can go to the LG NCAA fan engagement website, to play online trivia games and tweet results. They can also enter for a chance to win a trip to the 2016 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Final Four and LG prizes, said LG.
In promotions coinciding with the NCAA March Madness basketball tournament, h.h. gregg is holding March Markdown deals and the Ultimate Home Court Advantage Sweepstakes for LG CE products and appliances, it said Monday. H.h. gregg is giving away $25,000 worth of LG products March 16 - April 6. The Starting Five grand prize includes an LG refrigerator, washer/dryer, 4K Ultra HD TV, 60-inch LED TV and soundbar, said the website. Daily prizes will be awarded with a basketball theme for each day: Center Monday is an LG refrigerator; Power Forward Tuesday is a washer/dryer; Point Guard Wednesday is a soundbar; Shooting Guard Thursday is a 4K TV; 6th Man Friday is a tablet; Small Forward Saturday is a 60-inch LED TV and Role Player Sunday is a $100 h.h. gregg gift card. A tie-in with Facebook and Twitter rewards consumers who share the Acrobatic Slam Dunk video on the h.h. gregg website with an additional entry in the sweepstakes. Consumers are urged to share the dunk video daily for additional chances to win. The retailer is giving away a $500 store gift card in a drawing where contestants enter a photo on Instagram or Twitter that shows how they watch games. The promotion, called #MyHomeCourt, runs through April 6, said the retailer. In a separate financing offer, good through March 28, h.h. gregg is offering 0 percent financing on qualifying purchases of $797 or more made with an h.h. gregg credit card. The financing offer excludes computers, laptops, tablets, videogame systems, MP3 players, cameras and camcorders. Separately, markdown deals through March 28 include LG 50-inch and 65-inch HDTVs for $499 and $699 and a Samsung 40-inch LED smart TV for $379, said the retailer.
Target is holding a sale on select Apple products through its Cartwheel by Target mobile coupon service. Shoppers choose offers they want using the Cartwheel app and scan the coupon barcode at checkout to get the savings. Offers include 10 percent off iPads, Apple TV, iPhones, iPods and accessories. Gift cards for iTunes are 15 percent off during the promotion in denominations $25 and higher. The deals, good in stores only, run through March 14, Target said.
LG Electronics USA extended its “corporate partnership” with the NCAA through August 2018, the company said Tuesday. The arrangement gives LG “exclusive category marketing and promotional rights” for CE products, mobile phones and home appliances across all 89 NCAA championship events in 23 sports, it said. LG also launched LGGameDayHub.com as a “central location” for NCAA-related content, including a sweepstakes for a chance to win a trip to this year's NCAA Men’s Final Four in Indianapolis, where LG plans to expand its on-site promotional activity, it said.
The 2015 NASCAR season got underway Sunday with the Daytona 500, and Sprint used the event to take on AT&T and Verizon. Sprint, which said in December that it would end its NASCAR sponsorship after the 2016 season, aired the same offer repeatedly during Sunday’s broadcast: “Bring us your Verizon or AT&T bill and we’ll cut your rate plan in half.”
Pioneer’s SP-SB03 Andrew Jones-designed speaker base for TV sound was a Deal of the Day at Amazon Friday, selling for half off at $174.99. The unit includes optical, analog and Bluetooth connections, and drivers include two midranges, a pair of tweeters and two woofers, each with its own amplifier, according to specs. The SP-SB03 received 3 ½ stars on average out of 25 user reviews.