General Motors vehicles will make up another 20 percent and Nissan 6 percent with the rest coming from Hyundai, Kia and other automakers.

Dollar Thrifty reached a new deal with Chrysler in August agreeing to purchase about 27,000 vehicles from the firm during 2010. In the past, the car rental group had an agreement with Chrysler that required it to buy 75 percent of its fleet from the automaker, which restructured in a government-supported bankruptcy earlier this year. Chrysler is currently under management control of the Italian firm Fiat.

The rental car company, headquartered in Tulsa, entered into a three-year deal with Ford back in February that will allow the Company to source a portion of its annual vehicle purchases through Ford until August of 2012.

According to Dollar Thrifty spokesman Chris Payne, the company eventually sells about 95 percent of its fleet as vehicles are taken out of service, so expanding the number of automakers makes it easier to dispose of vehicles when the time comes. The more diverse lineup also reduces risks from changes in vehicle values and automaker production plans.

Ford vehicles to be offered for rental by Dollar and Thrifty include the Focus, Fusion, Mustang convertible, Ford Escape SUV and the Mercury Grand Marquis. GM models include the Chevy Cobalt, Aveo, and Malibu, and the GMC Acadia. Chrysler will continue to provide Dodge Calibers and Chargers, Dodge Grand Caravans and Chrysler Town and Country minivans, according to Payne. Dollar Thrifty will also buy some Jeep brand vehicles such as the Compass, Liberty Sport and Grand Cherokee.

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Shane Proctor of Mooresville, N.C. emerged victorious, riding all three of his bulls for 261 points. Proctor rode a bull named Juicy Vindication for 87.25 points and a third place finish in round one, followed up with an 86 point ride on Rude Awakening in round two, and rode Okie Dokie in the final round for 87.75 points, locking up the coveted GoDaddy.com Invitational event title.

Professional bull riding is an emerging sport where riders attempt to stay mounted for at least eight seconds on a wildly bucking bull. The sport now has more than 100 million viewers each year.

“Bull riding use to be a niche sport, but it’s quickly growing into a big league event,” according to Bob Parsons, GoDaddy’s CEO. “It’s about as American as any sport there is – and it takes nerve. These professional riders are as tough as any athlete in the world. They’re edgy too, and we like that.”

GoDaddy Girl Erin Kalin performed the National Anthem on both days of the event in Portland.

PBR is the most recent addition to a growing list of professional sports sponsored by GoDaddy including NASCAR, IndyCar, and television advertising in professional hockey, baseball and of course the NFL. It has been noted time and again that GoDaddy recognizes the value of increasing advertising budgets during a time when other companies are cutting back.

If you’re looking for savings on your Website, our GoDaddy Coupon will save you 20% on your hosting plan. Enter code MEVIO20H at checkout. And that’s no bull!

In the wake of claims by one of the big credit reporting firms that fraud alerts being placed on behalf of an individual by identity protection firms are a misuse of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, LifeLock is replacing fraud alerts as one of the company’s primary consumer protection methods, according to a recent press release from the company.

To be deployed in the coming weeks, the new system will provide better and broader protection to current and prospective members. The new system features sophisticated technologies such as scientific modeling and multi-point data mining to help identify fraud and protect LifeLock’s customers.

LifeLock CEO Todd Davis announced “The team at LifeLock will never lose sight of the reason we are in business – to help protect consumers who are vulnerable to identity theft.” Davis also noted that criminals are devising increasingly complex schemes to commit fraud, so protection services must constantly evolve as well so they can remain two steps ahead.

The new identity protection system will use more advanced algorithms to spot identity fraud and will monitor more data sources such as retailers, banks, mortgage lenders, utilities, and auto lenders as well as the major credit bureaus. The company will also examine longitudinal patterns across their entire network to better help predict risks and vulnerabilities to individual members.

In addition to the new identity protection system, LifeLock will continue to provide members with their other array of personal protection services such as WalletLock™. In the case of a stolen or lost purse or wallet one call to LifeLock’s toll-free number is all it takes to handle the tedious task of notifying bank accounts, credit accounts, insurance information, etc., and begin the process of replacing driver’s license, Social Security card and other documents. They will also continue to offer their $1 million total service guarantee.

If you’d like to learn more about what LifeLock has to offer, take advantage of our LifeLock Promo Code for a free one month trial and 10% savings on your subscription.

NASCAR Sprint Cup points leader Mark Martin will drive for Hendrick Motorsports through 2011, and GoDaddy.com has signed to be primary sponsor of his nunber 5 car Chevrolets in the Series. The world’s leading registrar of Internet domain names will be on the hood for 20 races next year, including the Daytona 500.

Although Martin admits that 2011 is a long-term commitment in NASCAR, he says the sponsorship opportunity from GoDaddy made the decision to stick with Hendrick an easy one. “That shouldn’t come as any big surprise,” Martin said of the contract extension. “Who would want to quit?”

Martin had initially committed to just one full season in the number 5 car, with an option to run at least a partial schedule again next year. After a win in April at Phoenix (his first victory since 2005) and subsequent wins at Darlington, Michigan and Chicago this year, the team seems like a natural fit.

The sponsorship deal from GoDaddy is the first hint of a new primary sponsor in recent months for NASCAR’s top cup series. The economy has limited many companies’ marketing budgets, with several companies scaling back or leaving sports sponsorships entirely. GoDaddy has also been involved in NASCAR in the Nationwide Series, and in IndyCar as a secondary sponsor for GoDaddy Girl Danica Patrick for several years, but sponsoring a high-profile Sprint Cup contender such as Martin’s number 5 car team is a major step for GoDaddy that will provide a great deal more exposure.

Martin, who at 50 years old is considered by some to be the dean of active drivers, went into semi-retirement in 2006, so his success this year is a phenomenon. Martin says “As long as I can have fun, compete at a high level and have the opportunity to win, I’m going to continue to do this. I’m having a blast.”

“GoDaddy.com is an exciting, aggressive partner with immense marketing savvy,” says Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports. “The fact that they’re again expanding their relationship with us says a lot about the success of their business and the results they’ve seen from these programs.”

Congratulations to Mark Martin, Hendrick Motorsports, GoDaddy.com and all involved, and best of luck in the Cup chase!

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Over 60% of those surveyed do still plan to celebrate Halloween 2009, but more are planning to create their own costumes and most are planning to spend less on candy and decorations. Still, more than 4 out of 5 costumes worn this year will be purchased rather than homemade.

Young adults aged 18 – 24 who usually spend the most for Halloween festivities plan to curtail the most this year, spending an average of around $68 (as compared to $86 last year).

National Retail Federation president and CEO Tracy Mullin indicated that since retailers know that Americans will be looking to celebrate on a budget, they will be offering creative costume and decorating ideas in every price point imaginable. “The economy has caught up to Halloween this year,” said Mullin.

If you’re celebrating on a budget this year, take some advice from the friendly ghosts at MEVIO. Make your Halloween expenditures go further by using our BuyCostumes Coupon Code at checkout to save 12% on your order of the coolest costumes, decorations and party supplies on the planet. Even if you plan to make your own costume, a mask, wig, hat or other accessory from BuyCostumes.com can add that finishing touch at a very modest price. They’ve got a full assortment of costume ideas for under $10!

They offer same day shipping on their Halloween costumes and party items, and if you’re not satisfied with your purchase once it arrives, send it back and get a refund, guaranteed.

Don’t cut back on the fun. Stretch your Halloween budget this year with costumes and supplies from BuyCostumes.

Come October 1st, Avis and Budget will become the first major rental-car companies to completely ban smoking throughout their entire North American fleets. Cars will undergo an inspection upon return and customers who ignore the ban and smoke in the vehicles will face a cleaning fee of up to $250.

John Barrows, spokesman of the Avis Budget Group, indicates that the number 1 request they get is for a smoke-free car, and one of the most common customer complaints is that a car smells of smoke. He also mentioned that cleaning a smoky car increases the cost of operation, because the vehicles have to be taken out of service longer. The new smoking ban is meant to address all three concerns.

Smoking bans or restrictions have spread across various modes of transportation in recent decades, beginning with the first ban on smoking during short domestic flights imposed by Congress in 1988, and expanded in 1990 to flights of up to six hours. That same year, smoking on interstate buses was also prohibited. Restrictions and bans on smoking came to Amtrak in 1994. Although other car rental companies have taken more limited steps to address concerns related to smoking in their vehicles, Avis and Budget are the first to impose a fleet-wide ban.

According to a study released last month by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, tobacco smoke residue is significantly more concentrated in cars than it is in bars, restaurants and other public places. Based on customer research, Budget and Avis expect to gain more business than they lose by imposing the ban, thus helping their bottom line in tough economic times.

Whether you’re a smoker or not, you’ll find a vehicle rental to meet your needs at considerable savings in the Discount Car Rentals section of our site. Choose from top rental firms including Avis, Budget, Dollar and Thrifty.

LifeLock, Inc. has been recognized as Arizona’s fastest growing company with a 2009 Arizona Corporate Excellence (ACE) Award. A leader in identity theft protection services nationwide, LifLock was selected for the ACE Award based on revenue growth over the last two years. The awards program calculates both the actual dollar growth and the percentage of revenue growth in order to put both small and large companies on an even playing field.

The goal of the ACE Awards is to develop an increasing sense of community among private companies in Arizona and to increase the sharing of knowledge among them. Through participation in the program, the ACE Awards also offers executives at all levels and opportunity to enhance their personal networks. In order to qualify for the awards, a company must be for-profit, privately held and headquartered in Arizona.

“It’s a tremendous honor for us,” said LifeLock CEO Todd Davis. “We’ve seen phenomenal growth over the last few years, and I’m proud of my team to meet the challenges that come with the fast-changing dynamics. I’m also proud to be helping to build our community right here in Arizona.”

Identity fraud increased 22% last year to to 9.9 million incidents reported. That’s a 5-year high. Proactive protection services from LifeLock help safeguard against identity theft  with aggressive, ongoing, 24/7 monitoring, a year around double check, and an end to pre-approved offers which are often stolen by thieves and used to set up fraudulent accounts.

Protecting your identity requires constant vigilance. If you’re interested in trying LifeLock’s identity protection services, take advantage or our one month free trial and you’ll also get 10% savings on your subscription with our LifeLock Promo Code. LifeLock’s advanced Identity Theft Protection system is backed by a $1,000,000 service guarantee. They’re that confident in their ability to protect your good name. Why not sign up today?

To borrow a phrase from Mark Twain, reports of the death of the long play album have been greatly exaggerated, at least when it comes to leading digital music retailer eMusic. eMusic announced last week that full album downloads accounted for 72% of their worldwide sales over the past year, and over the past few months have risen even further, now making up fully three-quaters of total sales. This is an increase from the average of just under 70% over the past several years.

Other major music sites have also reported an increase in album purchases as a proportion of their sales, but still make up a substantially smaller percentage of the total, with more than a billion digital tracks bought in 2008 by U.S. Consumers and only 65 million digital albums bought. Total album sales (including CD purchases) fell by 14% that year.

Music services such as Amazon.com and iTunes have launched initiatives to boost sales of full albums, but eMusic seems to have already found the keys to success in doing so. According to Danny Stein, eMusic President and CEO, although the majority of their customers are over the age of 25, they encourage them to buy more music with subscription and album pricing and by providing more musical context than other services.

eMusic provides editorial features that place albums in context, showing career surveys of artist’s catalogs, noting musical peers and influences, and bringing in additional artist information and reviews from other sites such as Wikipedia, YouTube and Flickr.

eMusic also encourages album purchases by the way the site is organized. There are no listings for individual tracks, as there are in iTunes or at Amazon. At eMusic, charts are only for albums, artists, labels and composers.

As lagging sales of singles, ring tones, etc. have the music industry scrambling to focus consumer interest on buying albums once again, eMusic is drawing attention to its own already successful model.

If you’re interested in learning more about the eMusic difference, why not take advantage of our eMusic Free Trial? You’ll download 35 tracks for free and with no obligation during the 14 day trial period. Choose from the millions available at eMusic.

Web publishing provider Squarespace announced this week that all of the electricity they buy is Green-e certified renewable and they are now a TerraPass certified carbon-balanced business. In a post on their official blog, Tristan Handy writes “We recently sat down to do a review of our complete footprint and realized that we were so darn close to being carbon-balanced that we might as well go the rest of the way.”

Squarespace has long had a commitment to reduced environmental impact, designing their product to minimize the number of servers required, achieving more than 20 times the efficiency of most custom hosting solutions. They also chose their office location in a dense urban center for lower impact, are nearly paper free, recycle within their office, reuse old servers in their testing environment, and use carbon offsets for employee travel and other carbon emissions that can’t be avoided.

They use 100% renewable energy generated by wind turbines to power their office, and their data center utilizes renewable energy certificates, resulting in a 100% renewable operation.

Servers across the nation consume an estimated 2 – 3% of the total electric energy used in the United States.

Renewable energy certificates are a way for businesses and individuals to purchase renewable energy even when the power coming directly off the grid to their location is not, thus displacing the polluting power being consumed.

Carbon offsets from organizations such as TerraPass are essentially financial instruments which represent the reduction of one metric ton of carbon dioxide or its equivalent in other greenhouse gases. According to their website although complex in practice, carbon offsets are fairly simple in theory. Projects that reduce carbon dioxide emissions sell one credit for every ton of emissions reduced in order to finance their operations. Buyers of the credits use them to make up for their own actual or estimated carbon emissions.

We congratulate Squarespace on achieving carbon balance, and setting such a great example for all of us.

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