Fans Send Nearly 50 Million Texts to Win Free iHeartRadio Music Festival Tickets

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Clear Channel today announced that music lovers nationwide sent a record-setting number of text messages – nearly 50 million – in a contest to win a free trip including tickets to both nights of the biggest live concert festival in radio history, the iHeartRadio Music Festival 2012. The event, which is taking place September 21 and 22 in Las Vegas, represents one of the hottest tickets in music history.

“We are thrilled by the enthusiastic response from millions of music lovers to this contest”

The national contest ran from July 9 through September 16 and was promoted on nearly 700 Clear Channel radio stations in 45 states. Giveaways for the Festival took place 10 times per day on weekdays and five times per day on weekends. More than 600 people won tickets for themselves and a guest to attend both nights of the Festival. Other prizes include exclusive, once-in-a-lifetime opportunities and artist packages including a blackjack game with Jason Aldean, autographed guitar and private meet and greet with Aerosmith, turntable and DJ lesson prize package with Linkin Park’s DJ, Green Day custom-made gear prize package and other private meet and greets with artists including P!nk and Usher.

Festival attendees will experience an extraordinary two-day lineup of musical superstars, including Taylor Swift, Aerosmith, Rihanna, Usher, Bon Jovi, Lil Wayne, Green Day, Swedish House Mafia, No Doubt, Brad Paisley, Pitbull, deadmau5, Miranda Lambert, Enrique Iglesias, Linkin Park, Jason Aldean, P!nk, Mary J. Blige and Calvin Harris, among others.

“We are thrilled by the enthusiastic response from millions of music lovers to this contest,” said Tom Poleman, President of Clear Channel National Programming and Executive Producer of the Festival. “We’re maximizing all our platforms — broadcast, digital and mobile — to fully engage music fans in all the excitement surrounding this year’s Festival, and it’s clearly working; radio listeners across the country sent almost 50 million text messages to enter to win tickets to the iHeartRadio Music Festival, recognizing the one of a kind lineup of superstars from all genres of music. The Festival has become the Super Bowl of music – the one event of the year everyone wants to go to.”

The contest was one of many opportunities including on-air, online and through social media to win tickets to the iHeartRadio Music Festival.

Last year’s iHeartRadio Music Festival marked the official launch of the New iHeartRadio, Clear Channel’s free, industry-leading digital music service. This year, the Festival will celebrate how widely and rapidly it’s been embraced by listeners. iHeartRadio delivers everything listeners want in one free, fully-integrated service: instant access to more than 1,500 of the nation’s most popular live broadcast and digital-only radio stations from 150 cities, plus user-created custom stations inspired by favorite artists and songs.

For music fans across the country that cannot be in Las Vegas for the iHeartRadio Music Festival 2012, they will still have the opportunity to experience the event through a video stream live on Yahoo! Music, the exclusive web and mobile destination and in HD on Xbox Live, the exclusive gaming console. For more details about the iHeartRadio Music Festival 2012 visit iHeartRadio.com/vegas. Artists and/or event are subject to change or cancellation without notice.

About Clear Channel Media and Entertainment

With 239 million monthly listeners in the U.S., Clear Channel Media and Entertainment has the largest reach of any radio or television outlet in America. Clear Channel Media and Entertainment serves 150 cities through 850 owned radio stations. The company’s radio stations and content can be heard on AM/FM stations, HD digital radio channels, Sirius/XM satellite, on the Internet at iHeartRadio.com and on the company’s radio station websites, on the iHeartRadio mobile application on iPads and smartphones, and used via navigation systems from TomTom, Garmin and others.

The company’s operations include radio broadcasting, online and mobile services and products, live concerts and events, syndication, music research services and independent media representation. Clear Channel Media and Entertainment is a division of CC Media Holdings, Inc. (OTCBB: CCMO), a leading global media and entertainment company. More information on the company can be found at clearchannel.com, clearchanneloutdoor.com and ccmediaholdings.com.

Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/iHeartRadio