PepsiCo Brings Best of SXSW to Audiences Outside of Austin Via First Time Ever Livestreaming

PepsiCo Expands Search for Digital Start-Up Partners With Launch of PepsiCo10 Europe

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Mar 11, 2011, 08:00 ET

AUSTIN, Texas, March 11, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- PepsiCo, the largest food and beverage company in North America, is creating rich experiences for the digital influencers at South by Southwest Interactive (SXSWi) and extending the fete, for the first time, to audiences outside of Austin via exclusive livestreaming of SXSWi keynotes and premier panels as well as curated content from the PepsiCo Plugged-In Stage at the Austin Convention Center. Tune in at www.pepsico.com/sxsw. For daily media updates, including photos and videos, visit http://pitch.pe/129339.

A three-year veteran of SXSWi, PepsiCo is focusing its on-site and virtual experiences on the idea of partnership, including the announcement of PepsiCo10 Europe, an open call for European-based digital start-ups to partner with PepsiCo and its brands to execute innovative programs. For more information on the PepsiCo10 visit, www.pepsico10.com. Two start-ups chosen during the inaugural U.S.-focused PepsiCo10 are executing their respective pilot programs at SXSWi.

"SXSWi is a mecca for digital innovation, and we are happy to again connect with the community, collaborating together on the newest and best ideas in the space," said Bonin Bough, Global Digital and Social Media Director for PepsiCo.

Idea sharing will be priority at the PepsiCo Plugged-In Stage, where PepsiCo will feature panel discussions and interviews with some of the top minds in social media. In addition, the stage will host a series of discussions curated by PepsiCo partner Fast Company and other community-sourced programming on important topics like sustainability, nutrition and ethics on the web.

PepsiCo Plugged-In Stage activities will be complemented by the PepsiCo Playground, a lounge space designed to showcase the brands that make up PepsiCo—including Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade, Frito-Lay and Pepsi Beverages. The Playground will feature raw materials like potatoes, oranges and oats used in some of PepsiCo's products. And a custom Super Shopper digital game, using cutting-edge technology from PepsiCo10 company Evil Genius Designs, will allow SXSW-goers to "shop" for the wide array of PepsiCo products, post scores to the leaderboard and tweet photos of games to their social networks. The space underscores PepsiCo's position as the world's No. 2 food and beverage company and its commitment to diversify its portfolio by tripling the size of its good-for-you product segment to $30 billion by 2020.

Among the key audiences PepsiCo is connecting with at SXSWi are women. The PepsiCo Women's Inspiration Network (PepsiCo WIN) is a new online interactive channel featuring compelling content on topics important to women. PepsiCo WIN, in partnership with leading female blogger Sloane Berrent, will host "Digitini" honoring nine influential women in social media and technology. Interviews with the honorees as well as event attendees will be posted on www.pepsicowin.com.

In addition to PepsiCo's broad activation at SXSWi, more of the company's brands are taking part in the digital thought leader event than ever before.

Pepsi Max is partnering with established and up-and-coming content and media partners to create a one-of-a-kind experience at the intersection of music and digital, both for fans attending SXSWi and for those at home. From innovative digital experiences, live-streamed concerts and content to interactive blogger events at the Pepsi Max Lot, Pepsi Max SXSWi partnerships include:
- Grooveshark partnership to provide a stage for up-and-coming music acts and create a participatory concert experience for fans on site and at home.
- Foursquare partnership features a "Golden Ticket" program that rewards users who check-in at SXSWi venues around Austin with access to the Pepsi Max-sponsored Big Boi concert on Monday, March 14.
- Partnership with BreakoutBand, a PepsiCo10 company that creates a social, music-making experience for users, will allow music fans to mix their own beats on site at the Pepsi MAX Lot for a chance to win prizes.
Brisk will distribute 4,000 limited-edition SXSW-exclusive cans featuring images crowd-sourced from Brisk fans using photo-sharing start-up phenomenon Instagram. Brisk and its creative agency Mekanism will also explore the success of its web films with "Creativity, Celebrity & Brand Strategy: A Brisk Discussion of Ozzy and Machete," a panel discussion featuring Danny Trejo and Robert Rodriguez of the 2010 film Machete, and moderated by Frank Rose of Wired Magazine.
Lipton Natural Iced Tea will bring the natural elements of its product to life through a ground-breaking music partnership with Pandora and provide conference attendees with a first taste of a brand new line of 100-percent natural ready-to-drink iced tea flavors.
Mountain Dew will highlight its exclusive digital music label Green Label Sound, designed to support emerging musicians by building their fan bases and exposing their music to new audiences, at an official SXSW concert. The concert will feature Green Label artists, including The Cool Kids, whose album "When Fish Ride Bicycles" is set to be the first album released under Green Label Sound via iTunes this spring. Find out more at www.greenlabelsound.com.
SoBe is inviting SXSW-goers to their Lizard Lounge to sample more than 15 different flavors of SoBe and get a digital makeover on an interactive machine that lets people try out the look of a mohawk, handlebar moustache and more.

For a full schedule of PepsiCo Plugged-In Stage activities, including scheduled panel discussions and book signings, as well as livestreaming content, recap videos and blog posts, visit www.pepsico.com/sxsw.

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo offers the world's largest portfolio of billion-dollar food and beverage brands, including 19 different product lines that generate more than $1 billion in annual retail sales each. Our main businesses -- Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade, Frito-Lay, and Pepsi Cola -- also make hundreds of other enjoyable and wholesome foods and beverages that are respected household names throughout the world. With net revenues of approximately $60 billion, PepsiCo's people are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth by investing in a healthier future for people and our planet, which we believe also means a more successful future for PepsiCo. We call this commitment Performance with Purpose: PepsiCo's promise to provide a wide range of foods and beverages for local tastes; to find innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment, including by conserving energy and water usage, and reducing packaging volume; to provide a great workplace for our associates; and to respect, support, and invest in the local communities where we operate. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.

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