Pokémon Catches a Ride with Amtrak Promo
Pokémon USA is riding high with Amtrak and Viz Media under a new sweepstakes that will send a family of four to the Big Apple to tour the company’s headquarters.
Consumers can register for the Gotta Catch a Ride to New York sweepstakes at Amtrak.com/Lucario. One grand-prize winner gets a five-day, four-night trip for four to New York to tour Pokémon USA’s corporate headquarters, four round-trip coach train tickets to New York from any destination Amtrak serves and a $600 American Express gift card.
The sweepstakes celebrates Pokémon USA’s newest DVD release, Pokémon: Lucario and the Mystery Mew, which hits retail stores Sept. 19. In the movie, Ash and his best friend, Pikachu, find themselves face-to-face with Lucario, a mysterious Pokémon who has been locked away for centuries.
Pokémon: Lucario and the Mystery Mew is Pokémon’s eighth movie to be released on DVD. The first 200,000 DVDs will include an insert promoting Amtrak’s half-off fare for kids. Kids ages two to 15 receive 50% off most Amtrak rail fares in the U.S. when accompanied by a full-fare paying adult.
To further promote the DVD release, Amtrak is offering 20,000 kids activity packs filled with a Pokémon: Lucario and the Mystery Mew movie poster, a Pokémon fan magazine, Pokémon postcards, and a insert for 50% off a child’s fare. Activity packs will be available through October. In addition, this week Amtrak will wrap one of its middle cars with promotional material around Pokémon: Lucario and the Mystery Mew. The wrapped train, which will originate from Philadelphia, will travel between Boston and Washington, DC, through Oct. 13. Phaedra Kaufman, licensing associate for Pokémon USA, said.
Fans can get a sneak peek of the DVD this week at a special New York City screening on Sunday. Consumers can send an e-mail to [email protected] to reserve tickets to the free premiere. Pokémon plans to distribute free movie posters to screening attendees, Kaufman said.
Pokémon USA, a subsidiary of The Pokémon Co. in Japan, is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. Pokémon was first created as a video game in Japan for the Nintendo Game Boy system, which taught kids sportsmanship and teamwork. In October 1996, the Pokémon Trading Card Game was introduced into the Pokémon world. Two years later, Pokémon fever broke in the U.S.
The sweepstakes runs through Oct. 13. Online materials, p.r., and signage support. Bender Helper Impact, New York City, handles p.r. Viz Media, San Francisco, handles the Web site and sweepstakes fulfillment.
