NBC, Houseparty.com Promote Friday Night Lights with 1,000-Party Bash

Second Season of TV Series Debuts Oct. 5

By Sarah Outhwaite -- Broadcasting & Cable, 8/24/2007 11:07:00 AM

As first reported in B&C, NBC and Houseparty.com will join forces to throw 1,000 viewing parties celebrating the second season of Friday Night Lights for fans nationwide Sept. 14, it was announced Thursday by John Miller, chief marketing officer of NBC Universal Television Group.

"We thought this partnership with Houseparty.com would be a great way to reignite the excitement of the fan base for Friday Night Lights," Miller said. "With word-of-mouth advertising being so effective, we wanted to create a natural venue for that kind of experience in the comfort of people's homes."

Designed to generate buzz for the series’ season-two premiere, airing Oct. 5 on NBC, the viewing parties offer an exclusive sneak preview of the episode. Friday Night Lights party kits additionally include DVDs of season-one episodes, customized merchandise, access to the FNL House Party Web site and a preview of NBC's new show, Bionic Woman.

NBC will send these party kits to 1,000 selected fans across the country after an application and evaluation process. Houseparty.com will then give each host his or her own page on its site for coordinating individual Friday Night Lights parties.

The parties are being promoted through FNL fan sites, Houseparty.com, NBC.com and affiliated Web sites.