Citi teams with MySpace for unique rewards program

New card will reward for community and environmental service

By Seamus McAfee

Cardholders of the new Citi Forward by MySpace, the product of a partnership between Citi and social networking site MySpace, will be able to earn rewards by helping their communities just by paying their bills on time, Citi announced.

Along with providing good credit consumers with a low interest rate, Citi Forward cardholders will earn 100 points in its ThankYou Rewards Network for each billing period they pay on time and stay under their credit limit. ThankYou points can later be exchanged for merchandise, gift cards, travel packages, student loan rebates, and charitable donations.

Citi Forward by MySpace cardholders can also earn points by completing what Citi calls "socially responsible" acts, such as volunteering or switching to energy-efficient light bulbs. They can redeem their ThankYou Points for MySpace music downloads, VIP and private concert experiences, movie premiere tickets, and trips to a charity gala.

According to a 2006 report by Internet research company comScore, MySpace caters to a wide variety of age groups, with more than half of MySpace's visitors being aged 35 or older. "There is a misconception that social networking is the exclusive domain of teenagers," said Jack Flanagan, executive vice president of a comScore product called Media Metrix.

The Citi Forward by MySpace card arrives following a variety of attempts by Citi to appear environmentally and socially responsible, including joining Ceres' Network of Companies -- a list of companies that works for sustainability --  in March 2008, and helping to spearhead the Carbon Principles -- climate change guidelines for power companies --  in February 2008 along with JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley.

Published: March 6, 2009

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