Rodale, NBC Universal, Reveille extend Biggest Loser partnership

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Rodale, NBC Universal’s Television, DVD, Music and Consumer Products Group, and production company Reveille announced an extension to their partnership that includes more books, mobile, and Rodale integrations into the 2008/2009 seasons of the hit series The Biggest Loser, premiering September 16 on NBC at 8 p.m. EST. With the addition of a mobile application for the subscription Web site The Biggest Loser Club, the launch of two new Rodale-published The Biggest Loser books, multiple editor guest appearances on the show, and a comprehensive print promotion program, the integration will extend across more Rodale platforms than ever before.


“Rodale has built its reputation on helping people transform themselves through health and wellness,” said Kim Niemi, Senior Vice President, NBC Universal Television, DVD, Music and Consumer Products Group. “It has been an ideal partner for us on The Biggest Loser and we are looking forward to our continuing success together.” Mark Koops, managing director at Reveille, added, “Our aim has always been to provide great programming that engages our viewers. In the instance of The Biggest Loser, we have an additional goal—namely, to change lives. With the upcoming premiere of The Biggest Loser: Families, we are excited to work with Rodale to deliver another season of compelling, life-altering viewing integrated with online tools, books, and mobile applications.”

For the first time, Rodale’s companion subscription service Web site, The Biggest Loser Club (www.biggestloserclub.com), will be available via mobile devices. Users will be able to access many of the site’s tools and features—including shopping lists, recipes, and customized diet and exercise plans—with their cell phones, ensuring that they can make the right choices and track their progress, anytime, anywhere. The site, which launched in 2005, will be highlighted during the “Where Are They Now?” segment of each The Biggest Loser episode this season as a key element of each participant’s weight loss strategy.

Building on the success of the bestselling The Biggest Loser Cookbook, released in 2006, and the three additional The Biggest Loser books since, Rodale will publish a second cookbook in November. Author Devin Alexander will help readers recreate the healthy meals and habits they see on the program in their own homes with all-new recipes, trainer tips, and motivational stories. Rodale will also publish another The Biggest Loser companion book early next year, in conjunction with the launch of season seven in January.

The Biggest Loser will also be integrated throughout Rodale’s print properties. Contestant(s) from The Biggest Loser will again be featured on the cover and in the pages of the December issue of Prevention magazine. Editorial content related to The Biggest Loser will also run in the December editions of Men’s Health, Women’s Health, and Best Life. In addition, Rodale will publish The Biggest Loser–branded special interest publications in October, December, and February that will include meal plans, exercise programs, and other advice from the series’ trainers, nutritionists, and contestants. Finally, a The Biggest Loser ad campaign will run across all of Rodale’s magazines.