NeighborOil and FreeCause Partner to Reduce Home Heating Oil Costs

BOSTON, Feb. 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Recent start-up NeighborOil and rewards technology leader FreeCause have partnered to offer consumers innovative new technology that allows members to earn points simply for shopping online, which they can then redeem for discounts on home heating oil.

The program allows members to sign up and begin earning Neighbor Points for shopping at any of FreeCause's merchant-funded network of more than 3,500 top online retailers, including Apple, QVC, Buy.com, and Sears. Neighbor Points are then automatically converted to discounts when consumers purchase oil directly from NeighborOil, reducing the amount people pay on their heating oil delivery by as much as 35%.

"NeighborOil is focused on gaining more outlets and opportunities for its members to earn Neighbor Points, especially when they are doing something they normally do like shopping online. With Neighbor Points, consumers control the amount of money they pay to heat their homes so partnering with FreeCause to gain such a tremendous number of outstanding retail relationships made perfect sense," stated Paul Harkins, CEO of NeighborOil.

This partnership is the latest successful implementation for FreeCause and highlights a growing trend as more companies are taking advantage of the evolution of eCommerce to reward their members with virtual currencies that drive members back to their brand. "Our revolutionary technology is setting the standard for how companies can best utilize rewards-earning tools to drive member engagement and activity," said Michael Jaconi, CEO of FreeCause. "With the rising cost of oil and the strain it has placed on millions of American families, NeighborOil offers a perfect synergy for our solutions. We are proud to provide NeighborOil consumers with an engaging, user-friendly way to earn valuable rewards that help offset these rising energy costs."

To learn more about NeighborOil and how members can reduce their home heating oil costs by shopping online, visit https://neighboroil.com/.

About FreeCause

FreeCause, one of the fastest growing technology companies in Boston, specializes in building innovative software that enables major brands, loyalty programs, sports teams, and nonprofits to monetize and reward consumers for their online behavior. The FreeCause team develops award winning, revolutionary new technology that allows consumers to connect with their favorite brands while simultaneously giving these consumers an enriched web experience. With more than 20 million subscribers, the FreeCause advanced loyalty and engagement solutions reward consumers as they search the Internet, or when they shop through the FreeCause network of over 3,500 online retailers. FreeCause is a wholly owned subsidiary of Rakuten, Inc. (JASDAQ: 4755).

About Rakuten

Rakuten, Inc. (JASDAQ: 4755), is one of the world's leading Internet service companies, providing a variety of consumer and business-focused services including e-commerce, travel, banking, securities, credit card, e-money, portal & media, online marketing and professional sports. Rakuten is expanding globally and currently has operations throughout Asia, Western Europe, and the Americas. Founded in 1997, Rakuten is headquartered in Tokyo, with over 10,000 employees worldwide. For more information, visit http://global.rakuten.com/group.

About NeighborOil

NeighborOil™ is a Patent Pending platform designed to assist consumers to reduce their dependency on foreign oil by giving them a new way to pay for more efficient heating systems and the fuel used to run them. With NeighborOil™ consumers control the price they pay to heat their homes thereby saving an average of more than 30% on their heating bill. NeighborOil accomplishes this through the use of its reward currency called Neighbor Points™. Neighbor Points are earned by members then convert to cash when purchasing thereby reducing the overall cost to a consumer.

SOURCE FreeCause