At a gala event today, Motorola (NYSE:MOT) announced that Jay Chou, one of Asia’s leading music artists, has been appointed as a Motorola brand ambassador for Greater China. Jay will star in Motorola commercials and advertisements and champion the dynamic music experience delivered by Motorola’s industry leading music-enabled and music-optimized mobile devices. Motorola also established a dedicated Jay Chou space on MOTOMUSIC[1] featuring his ring tones and full tracks, along with music videos, exclusive footage and interviews.

"I am very excited to be partnering with Motorola," Jay Chou proclaimed. "In addition to offering the coolest phones in the world, Motorola's dedication to delivering a superior user experience, especially in mobile music, is very important to me, and to everyone who makes music a part of their life. With a Motorola handset, my fans can enjoy music anytime and anywhere."

The announcement was made at a lavish launch event, held in Beijing’s Forbidden City Concert Hall, which was transformed into a classical opera theater. Every element, from the masked staff in capes who escorted guests to the gold painted models posing with iconic Motorola handsets, added an air of mystery, class and luxury to the occasion. An enchanting children’s choir greeted guests as they entered the concert hall, which was followed by a duet performance of “The Phantom of the Opera”.

“As the maker of Asia’s most iconic mobile devices, Motorola is elated and honored to be allied with Jay Chou, one of the most talented and popular Asian artists,” said Motorola’s Michael Tatelman, corporate vice-president and general manager, Mobile Devices Business, North Asia. “Jay is the ideal representative of the Motorola brand in Asia as we both share an obsessive dedication to delighting people – Jay through his music, Motorola through our handsets.”

In addition to being a brand ambassador for Motorola, Jay’s partnership will bring some very cool things for Motorola consumers in Greater China. Jay’s complete music portfolio is available for all Motorola mobile users now on MOTOMUSIC, the first and largest legal music download site in Mainland China. Going forward, Motorola will offer first access to all of Jay’s new tracks, making them available on www.motomusic.com.cn before they can be found anywhere else. Additionally, in his new 2006 album, Still Fantasy, Jay generously dedicated a song to Motorola, “BenCaoGangMu – Compendium of Materia Medica”. Guests and members of the media at the launch event got a glimpse of the global premier of its music video.

Motorola users have even more to look forward to – a special Jay Chou branded version of the iconic MOTOROKR E2 handset, will be available from 1 September to 7 October in Mainland China exclusively at China Mobile and Suning retail locations. The MOTOROKR E2 handset features a robust MP3 player compatible with a variety of different audio formats, giving users the ability to download and play MP3, WAV, AAC files and more. The special edition is preloaded with Jay Chou ring tone, full track, screensavers and bonus video.

The release of the Jay Chou MOTOROKR E2 will coincide with the launch of a range of exclusive Motorola/Jay Chou accessories, which will include phone holders, T-shirts, caps, and backpacks reflecting Jay’s hip-hop style. These collectibles will be available throughout the October National Holiday.

“Motorola deeply respects the way Jay has earned his success through his innovative style and his sincere focus on constantly enriching the way people can enjoy his music,” Tatelman concluded. “In a similar way, Motorola is a strong believer in protecting the intellectual property rights of the people who create and own the music we enjoy. In addition to leading the way in handsets and content, Motorola is also the leader in Asia in both adopting and seamlessly integrating digital rights management. In this way Jay’s ethos reflects Motorola’s own focus on delivering superior experiences.”