• Reuters, Friday, January 13, 2006 12 PM

Starbucks Corp. is taking yet another step beyond coffee drinks and into movie promotion. In a new deal, the ubiquitous chain will promote a low-budget film by Lionsgate called "Akeelah and the Bee" in its stores in exchange for an undisclosed share of all revenue from the film. The movie is about an inner city girl who strives to win a national spelling bee contest. Entertainment deals are not new for Starbucks. The international coffee chain has parlayed successful sales of music compilation CDs into deals for exclusive content with major artists like Bob Dylan and Alanis Morissette. It began shopping for a film to promote about a year ago, and chose "Akeelah" out of a group of 12 finalists, according to Starbucks Entertainment President Ken Lombard. "Not only was ('Akeelah') compelling and inspirational, it was very fitting with Starbucks from a brand perspective," he said. "Lionsgate was the right partner. They are very innovative. We were very impressed with the quality of films they select."

Read the whole story at Reuters »