Western Union launches Network Challenge to mark its 160th Anniversary
SINGAPORE, Aug. 18, 2011 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- Western Union, one of the world's most globally connected companies, is celebrating its 160th anniversary by launching the Western Union Network Challenge at www.westernunionworld.com/yourworld to identify the world's most networked individual.
(Photo: http://www.prnasia.com/sa/2011/08/17/20110817506134.html )
Western Union has created Your World, a new interactive online application that visually brings to life users' Facebook connections to their friends across the globe. The application also gives users a score ("World Index") that shows how globally connected they are. Your World users can compare their ranking against their Facebook friends, against people in their country and against the rest of the world.
Each individual's score will contribute to the score of the country where they live; meaning every single country in the world is in the running to prove itself the world's most geographically connected nation.
"Over 70% of the world's Internet population have now visited a social networking/blogging site, and Internet users are spending an average of almost six hours per month on social media sites(1)," said Drina Yue, Western Union's Managing Director and Senior Vice President for Asia Pacific.
"This is evident that building personal networks and maintaining strong ties with family and friends is a natural habit for most of us. Western Union is offering an opportunity to all nations in the world to prove to be the most geographically connected."
Your World has been created to celebrate the unique status of Western Union, which has an enormous global presence of approximately 470,000(2) Agent locations in 200 countries and territories.
Fifteen days since the site was launched, 422,110 individuals from 206 countries and territories visited www.westernunionworld.com .
Western Union President and CEO, Hikmet Ersek, said:
"When we were thinking how best to celebrate our landmark 160th anniversary and the role we play in connecting people across the globe, Your World made perfect sense.
"We're incredibly proud that people across the globe have been inviting us to be part of their lives for 160 years. Today, we're online, on mobile, on the phone, around the corner in approximately 470,000(2) locations and around the clock. That gives us a privileged and unique perspective on the world.
"We wanted to find a way to give consumers their own bird's eye view of their personal network in the world. As well as being a fun way to celebrate the power of human connectivity, Your World is going to create some fascinating insights, and perhaps encourage more of us to reach out to our fellow global citizens," Ersek said.
Your World is live today - go to www.westernunionworld.com/yourworld and type in individual Facebook login details to see individual global connections and play a part in contributing to the own country's status as the most geographically connected nation in the world.
(1): Source: The Nielsen Company's Asia Pacific Social Media Report 2010.
(2): Network data as of 30 June 2011, inclusive of the Vigo and Orlandi
Valuta branded services.
NOTES TO EDITORS
About Western Union
The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is a leader in global payment services. Together with its Vigo, Orlandi Valuta, Pago Facil and Western Union Business Solutions branded payment services, Western Union provides consumers and businesses with fast, reliable and convenient ways to send and receive money around the world, to send payments and to purchase money orders. The Western Union, Vigo and Orlandi Valuta branded services are offered through a combined network of approximately 470,000 agent locations in 200 countries and territories (network data as of June 30, 2011). In 2010, The Western Union Company completed 214 million consumer-to-consumer transactions worldwide, moving US$76 billion of principal between consumers, and 405 million business payments. For more information, visit http://www.westernunion.com .
SOURCE The Western Union Company