• by Lisa Bertagnoli , June 6, 2007

Burger King is joining a growing number of fast-food restaurants staying open all hours of the night.

The Miami-based chain is announcing its late-night campaign via an ad showing Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, the brand's spokesman as of last October, in a spot called "CEO to CEO."

In the spot, Combs, who is CEO of his own production company, craves a late-night BK meal. He drives to a Burger King but finds the restaurant closed. He then goes to the home of Burger King's CEO, who drives Diddy and his crew to a Burger King. The role of BK CEO John Chidsey is played by an actor. Crispin, Porter + Bogusky, Miami, handled.

In-store signage and packaging designed by Diddy, who also owns and designs the Sean Jean apparel label, will support the rollout.

Almost all 7,500 Burger King restaurants in the U.S. and Canada will stay open until midnight or later, says a Burger King spokesman. The exceptions are restaurants that don't control their own hours--for instance, those in malls, airports or on university campuses. Burger King's entire menu will be offered during the late-night hours.

The spokesman also says the extension of hours is permanent, not a limited-time promotion.

"In today's 24-hour society people work harder and play longer," says Russ Klein, Burger King's president of global marketing, strategy and innovation, in a release. "We're responding to demand."

Burger King is not the first chain to capitalize on late-night hunger pangs. McDonald's is open in many markets until midnight or later. Taco Bell, the fast-food Mexican chain, offers a "Fourth Meal" menu during later hours, and Wendy's, the Dublin, Ohio-based burger chain, also offers late-night dining.