Press Releases
Sony Ericsson’s FanWalkers arrive in Berlin on their way to the MTV Europe Music Awards 2009
100 of Europe’s most dedicated music fans from 15 different European countries participated in Sony Ericsson’s FanWalk 2009 – a 10 day challenge from Hamburg to Berlin that ended 5 November at the ultimate music event, the MTV EMA’s 2009.
A new challenge every day – no-one knows what tomorrow will bring – the trek to Berlin had been definitely a test of endurance and spirit for the FanWalkers. Not only they had to walk 300 kilometers through rainy and rough weather, they also took part in workshops and had the opportunity to show off their talents and skills to prove that they are the ultimate music fan.
On their way, every one of the 100 FanWalkers featured in an exciting daily webisode of the FanWalk which was uploaded to www.fanwalk.tv – so music fans everywhere can share the journey to Berlin. The webisodes show how they got stuck in mud, got reams of blisters and even when they were visited by German celebrities.
The FanWalkers are also given a Sony Ericsson W995 Walkman™ mobile phone, which enables them to send daily blogs and updates to Facebook™, Twitter, hi5 and Bebo as they walk.
3,120,000 burnt calories, 1 FanWalk romance, 8 eaten earthworms as well as 62 plasters and 4 broken knees – it was by no means easy for FanWalkers to motivate themselves afresh every day and stay right up at the front to maintain the daily themes. Many attributes were called for – street style, team spirit, wild life and talent, as well as music, entertainment, connectivity and friendship.
Democracy prevailed – every evening with the help of ‘motto cards’ the FanWalkers elected their personal favourite from within their own ranks to form a shortlist of possible Award Presenters.
The FanWalkers final steps were covered in snow, but when they arrived in Berlin they were met with a rousing welcome by the press and fans, as well as by some of last year’s FanWalkers. Amidst the exhausted adventurers is the winner of the Sony Ericsson FanWalk 2009. Gilian Deegan from Ireland mastered the challenges of the FanWalk with the highest score and had been elected from among the most promising candidates as the official MTV EMA Award Presenter. Accompanied from Juliette Lewis, Gilian Deegan presented the Best Alternative Award live at the MTV EMAs on 5 November – a money-can’t-buy dream prize for anyone who is passionate about music.
The Sony Ericsson FanWalk on twitter: www.twitter.com/fanwalk
Legal
© Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications AB, 2009.
The liquid identity, TrackID and PlayNow are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications AB. Sony is a trademark or registered trademark of Sony Corporation.
Ericsson is the trademark or registered trademark of Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson.
About Sony Ericsson:
Sony Ericsson is a top, global industry player with sales of around 97 million phones in 2008. Diversity is one of the core strengths of the company, with operations in over 80 countries including manufacturing in China and R&D sites in China, Europe, India, Japan and North America. Sony Ericsson was established as a 50:50 joint venture by Sony and Ericsson in October 2001, with global corporate functions located in London. For more information about Sony Ericsson please visit www.sonyericsson.com.
About Sony Ericsson FanWalk:
After last year’s enthusiastic feedback and vibrant interaction of applying and participating music fans, Sony Ericsson will bring back FanWalk onto the track. One-hundred hardcore music fans from throughout Europe (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Norway, Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Portugal, UK, Ireland, Estonia, as well as Turkey, Ukraine and Romania and Greece) will set out on a ten-day, 300-kilometre journey that will take them to one of this year’s greatest music events: the MTV Europe Music Awards. FanWalkers will begin their trek in Hamburg on October 27 and arrive in Berlin on November 5. Along the way, they’ll experience adventures together, overcome challenges and celebrate plenty of parties. On the evening of the big event, one lucky FanWalker will present an MTV Award to one of the prizewinning artists. Anyone who wants to know more details about FanWalk, or who wants to find out how they can be part of this exciting music adventure, can simply go to www.fanwalk.tv and sign in.
The Application Procedure:
The candidates must first make the cut at the online casting, which starts on July 13 on www.fanwalk.tv. Anyone who thinks they have what it takes to be a FanWalker can log in and prove why they – of all people – absolutely must be part of this once-in-a-lifetime adventure. There are three steps to take to become a FanWalker: First, each candidate who wants to sign up for FanWalk has to create his or her individual profile on www.fanwalk.tv. Friends, acquaintances and the website’s visitors can vote for their favourite profiles. To become part of FanWalk, the candidates have to win at least 50% of the “Off to Berlin” votes by the closing day. Afterwards, Sony Ericsson’s jury considers the creativity of the profiles and the originality of the answers to an application task. Finally, the jury will interview the field of candidates before the 100 FanWalkers are nominated.
About MTV Europe Music Awards:
The 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards is one of the most prestigious live music events. The 2008 Awards were held in Liverpool and were broadcast in over 40 countries. Hosted by Katy Perry, the show featured performances by artists including Beyoncé, P!nk, The Killers, Estelle, Kanye West and Kid Rock. Additionally, MTV underlined its commitment to multi-platform content with a live webcast hosted by Perez Hilton. Over 100 million votes were cast across eleven categories in 2008, and there were a total of 4,030,269 unique visitors to the Awards’ dedicated website at www.mtvema.com.
About MTV Networks International (MTVNI)
MTV Networks International includes the premier multimedia entertainment brands MTV: Music Television, VH1, Nickelodeon, TMF (The Music Factory), VIVA, Flux, Paramount Comedy, Comedy Central, Game One, Neopets, GameTrailers, Shockwave, Addicting Games, Atom Films and Xfire. MTV Networks’ brands are seen globally in 578 million households, in 162 countries and 33 languages via 166 locally programmed and operated TV channels and more than 350 digital media properties. The company’s diverse holdings also include interests in television syndication, digital media, publishing, home video, radio, recorded music, licensing &
merchandising and two feature film divisions, MTV Films and Nickelodeon Movies. MTV Networks is a unit of
Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON FANWALK, PLEASE CONTACT:
For corporate requests:
Sony Ericsson
Global Marketing Communications Manager
Catharina Rijstenbil
Catharina.Rijstenbil@sonyericsson.com
+49 (0) 89 82074 284
+49 (0) 151 1676 8823
Press Section:
Please also see www.fanwalk.tv/press for further information and tools.
