Live Nation, Hertz Team up for 'Movin' With Music': Rentals, VIP Parking, Artist Partnerships

NEW YORK — Hertz and Live Nation on Monday announced a new multi-year marketing partnership dubbed "Movin' With Music" that will make Hertz vehicles a more intimate part of the concert-going experience. Starting Jan. 1, Movin' With Music will encompass artist partnerships, VIP parking at select Live Nation venues and a streaming music platform called Hertz Live Radio available at Hertz facilities and on buses. A Hertz online music store is slated for fourth-quarter 2012, and will allow members to redeem loyalty points in exchange for exclusive music downloads.

our editor recommends

Ticketmaster to Issue Refunds to Customers Who Purchased Tickets Over Last 12 Years

Live Nation Canada Launches Electro Music Division

Live Nation, Universal Music Group Launch Partnership: Management, Ticketing, More

One of the first bands to be a part of Movin' With Music is Fitz & the Tantrums, the soul-pop band that performed at a press conference announcing the partnership at New York's Irving Plaza. Jerry Preyss, Hertz' VP of global innovation and marketing, said the band will be part of a major promotion to debut in the first half of 2012 that will include ticket giveaways and free rental cars for Tantrums shows at Live Nation venues.

Mark Frissora, Hertz CEO and chairman of the board, described the Movin' With Music program as a return to the company's roots. "The first thing you heard when you turned on a Hertz vehicle was the AM-FM radio," he said. "Now when concert-goers turn the key they could be listening to from a band whose concert they're holding tickets to." Hertz will also provide custom directions to out-of-town attendees at Live Nation venues via its NeverLost GPS software, a first-of-its-kind feature for the rental car industry.

Russell Wallach, president of Live Nation Network, the tour promoter's sponsorship arm, acknowledged that Hertz "maybe [isn't] the brand you associate with music," but "we'll work with artists to create unique, engaging music programs to get you music fans excited about Hertz," he told the crowd at the press conference.

Hertz is the latest in a series of corporate partners who've teamed up with Live Nation on multi-year branding deals. Earlier this year, UPS signed up for a b-to-b partnership that would help Live Nation offset its carbon footprint on ticket and merchandise delivery. And in 2010, Live Nation expanded a deal with Starwood Hotels to include Europe, Asia and the Middle East. The Hertz pact is expected to include activities in Europe, Australia, New Zealand and South America, executives from both companies confirmed to Billboard.biz Monday.