Go RED for Valentine’s Day to combat AIDS in Africa

Motorola and U.S. telecom operator Sprint announced a milestone in contributions from sales of the RED Motorazr V3m. To date, sales of the wireless phone designed to help eliminate AIDS in Africa can cover the annual cost of antiretroviral (ARV) treatment for AIDS for more than 12,000 people.

RED was founded by Bono and Bobby Shriver to raise awareness and money for the fight against AIDS in Africa. The groundbreaking initiative engages the private sector to create RED-branded products and deliver a portion of the profits directly to The Global Fund to invest in African AIDS programs with an emphasis on the health of women and children.

Sprint is the exclusive U.S. carrier for the RED Motorazr V3m, which first became available in early November. Sprint’s current advertising campaign focuses on the device in an effort to increase awareness and grow participation in this project. Both Sprint and Motorola contribute directly to The Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria with each RED Motorazr sold at Sprint.

“Reaching this milestone gives us the opportunity to encourage our customers to get into the spirit of Valentine’s Day, give the gift of RED and make a difference in this very important effort,” said Mark Schweitzer, chief marketing officer for Sprint. “With the exclusive content available from Sprint, including live television, NFL Mobile and Sprint Music Store, purchasing the RED Motorazr is an easy way to help in the fight against HIV/AIDS.”

The Motorazr V3m is one of Motorola’s thinnest multimedia phones for the CDMA network and features a refined metal housing and sculptured clamshell shape. The bold red hue of the RED Motorazr makes a striking statement complimenting its ultra-thin, attractive design.

Packaged with a stylish headset, The RED Motorazr includes five unique themed preloaded screen savers. Additional features include a 1.3-megapixel digital camera with 4x digital zoom and video capture, playback and streaming, GPS enabled, Bluetooth technology, speakerphone and a microSD memory card slot.

(RED)’s primary objective is to engage the private sector in raising awareness and funds for the Global Fund to help fight AIDS in Africa.

Companies whose products take on the (PRODUCT) RED mark contribute a significant percentage of the sales or portion of the profits from that product to the Global Fund to finance AIDS programs in Africa, with an emphasis on the health of women and children. Current partners are: American Express (U.K. only), Converse, Gap, Giorgio Armani, Apple and Motorola. MySpace.com is the first media sponsor in the United Kingdom and MTV Networks is the first media sponsor in the US.  www.joinred.com