| Press |
|
|
Note: This is archived information from past events. To view this year's news and contact info, click here. 19th Annual Freddie Awards Press Release PageBEST FREQUENT FLYER AND FREQUENT GUEST PROGRAMS CHOSEN IN THE 19TH ANNUAL FREDDIE AWARDS COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. - Frontier Airlines EarlyReturns was named frequent flyer Program of the Year and InterContinental Hotels Group Priority Club Rewards took top honors among hotel programs at the 19th Annual Freddie Awards on Thursday, April 26th. Internationally, Qatar Airways Privilege Club frequent flyer program was voted Program of the Year in the Europe/Middle East/Africa region, and India's Jet Airways Jet Privilege earned Program of the Year in the Asia/Pacific region. Nearly 450,000 frequent travelers worldwide cast online ballots to determine the winners. The awards represent excellence in frequent travel programs and rate the best frequent flyer and frequent guest programs in eight different categories: Program of the Year, Best Award, Best Bonus Promotion, Best Web Site, Best Elite-Level Program, Best Member Communications, Best Award Redemption and Best Customer Service. The Best Affinity Credit Card was also chosen. Voters were permitted to vote for programs in one of three global regions: Americas, Europe/Middle East/Africa and Asia/Pacific. Starwood Preferred Guest won Hotel Program of the Year in the Asia/Pacific region as well as in the Europe/Middle East/Africa region. InterContinental Hotels Group Priority Club Rewards placed first in the Americas region for the second year in a row. This is Frontier Airlines EarlyReturns first year to win a Program of the Year award. The Denver-based program also won in the Best Award category. Starwood Preferred Guest American Express was named top credit card in the Americas region, ending a nine-year reign at the top for Club Rewards from Diners Club. Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan took home the award for Best Member Communications, Best Web Site and Best Elite-Level Program, all in the Americas region. Starwood Preferred Guest took home the most Freddie awards overall with 11, while Qatar Airways Privilege Club earned the most honors for an airline program with eight. The awards were announced today by InsideFlyer Editor Randy Petersen during a ceremony at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, Virginia. Over 300 airline, hotel and credit card representatives attended the ceremony, along with several members of the voting public. "We are delighted to once again let frequent flyers throughout the world vote for those programs that truly rise up in excellence," Petersen said. "This is not an elitist view of what works with these programs - we find the 'best' by asking those who spend a great deal of their life on the road." Petersen also presented an "Industry Impact" award to United Mileage Plus and Etihad Guest. Introduced in 1992, the Industry Impact awards, are determined by editorial decision rather than by ballot. These awards honor the programs or individuals that have had, or will have, the biggest impact on the industry in coming years. This year, Mileage Plus was lauded for its innovative "Mileage Plus Choices" program available to United Mileage Plus Visa cardholders, which offered extended flexibility for members to redeem awards with no blackout dates. The Etihad Guest program also received an Industry Impact award for its Web site "slider" that allows members to create their own cash plus miles award with as little as one mile. The Freddie Awards honor quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on the overall merits of each program as reflected in a "Value Vote." Value Voting asks the voter to assign a number between one and 10 to the program for which he or she votes. To be eligible to win a Freddie Award, however, a program must receive at least one percent of the popular vote. The awards are named after the late Sir Freddie Laker, who attracted fame (and a knighthood in the United Kingdom) for pioneering low-cost air travel across the Atlantic in the 1970s. This year, InsideFlyer magazine partnered with Points.com, Awards For Mortgage And Real Estate, Priority Pass, Executive Travel/SkyGuide, American Express Incentive Services, ICLP and Loylogic to present the event. THIS YEAR'S WINNERS ARE: Program of the Year Best Award Best Bonus Promotion Best Web Site Best Elite-Level Best Member Communications Best Award Redemption Best Customer Service Best Affinity Credit Card Industry Impact Award |
|
19th Annual Freddie Awards Press Release Frequent Travelers Have Until February 28 To Cast Their Votes For Their Favorite Travel Loyalty Programs Colorado Springs, Colo. February 14, 2007 -- Frequent travelers from around the world are invited to cast a vote in the 19th Annual Freddie Awards, which are designed to award excellence among frequent travel programs in the airline, hotel and credit card industries. Since 1989, InsideFlyer magazine has served as the primary sponsor of the Freddie Awards, and has partnered this year with Points.com, Award for Mortgages and Real Estate, Priority Pass, Executive Travel SkyGuide, American Express Incentive Services, ICLP and Loylogic to present the event for the 19th consecutive year. And the Freddies continue to grow in popularity among the public. Last year, a record 390,000 frequent flyers voted, and we expect that record will be broken this year. "The Freddie Awards are highly coveted in the frequent travel industry because the winning programs are selected by frequent travelers themselves," said InsideFlyer Editor and Publisher, Randy Petersen. "And the Freddies continue to grow in popularity among the public. Last year, a record 390,000 frequent flyers voted, and we expect that record will be broken this year." Voters rate hotel, airline and credit card programs in nine categories: Program of the Year, Best Award, Best Bonus Promotion, Best Affinity Credit Card, Best Newsletter, Best Award Redemption, Best Elite-Level Program, Best Customer Service and Best Web Site. The Freddie Awards are determined by value voting, a system in which voters rate the value of their program choices on a scale of one to 10. Programs with the highest average score and at least one percent of the popular vote in each category are awarded Freddies. In essence, Freddies are awarded for quality, not quantity. The awards are named after the late Sir Freddie Laker (1922-2006) who attracted fame, and a knighthood in the United Kingdom, for his pioneering marketing ideas within the travel industry in the 1970s. Freddie Award balloting is conducted entirely online at freddieawards.com. Voting concludes on February 28, 2007 at 11:59 p.m. MT. A Freddie Award ceremony will be held April 26, 2007 at the Crystal Gateway Marriott Hotel in Arlington, Virginia, at which this year's winners will be revealed. The winners will also be announced in the May issue of InsideFlyer magazine and online at freddieawards.com. |