– The Warren Buffett / Berkshire Hathaway insured contest expanded to accept up to 15 million entries –
DETROIT, March 3, 2014 – Detroit-based Quicken Loans, the nation’s third largest mortgage lender, today announced it has teamed with Yahoo Sports as the technology provider for the now named ‘Quicken Loans Billion Dollar Bracket Challenge with Yahoo Sports’ contest. Yahoo Sports designed the online bracket experience and will host the exclusive destination (www.quickenloansbracket.com) for the challenge as college basketball fans take their shot at becoming America’s next billionaire.
“Millions of people are getting ready to enter the ‘Quicken Loans Billion Dollar Bracket’ challenge” said Dan Gilbert, Founder and Chairman of Quicken Loans. “When you are putting on a nationwide contest of this size, it’s important to work with the best partners to ensure its success. Yahoo Sports and their bracket technology is second to none. We are confident they will deliver a billion dollar-like experience.”
“We are excited to team up with Quicken Loans and Warren Buffett to give fans the chance to win a billion dollars using all of the information, tools and services available from Yahoo Sports,” said Ken Fuchs, VP and head of Yahoo Sports, Yahoo Finance and Product Partnerships. “There is even more at stake this year, and Yahoo Sports is the perfect place to get expert advice and data to help sports fans pick the perfect bracket.”
Quicken Loans has also increased the maximum number of contest entries to 15 million and will now allow one entry per person, instead of limiting the entries to one entry per household as was initially announced. The contest also now permits U.S. residents age 18 years and older to participate (expanded from the previously announced 21 years old and up).
Through the Quicken Loans Billion Dollar Bracket Challenge with Yahoo Sports, all qualified entrants who accurately predict the winners of all 63 games in the college men’s basketball tournament will share a $1 billion prize paid in 40 annual installments of $25 million. Alternatively, the winner(s) may elect to receive their share of an immediate $500 million lump sum payment.
In addition to the potential billion dollar grand prize, Quicken Loans will award $100,000 to each of the contest’s 20 most accurate ‘imperfect’ brackets to use toward buying, refinancing or remodeling a home.
The company has committed $1 million to charities in the Detroit and Cleveland markets to aid in urban youth education initiatives as part of the roll-out of the Billion Dollar Bracket Challenge with Yahoo Sports.
“I have been astonished by the response to Quicken Loans’ challenge, and the millions of people who have shown an interest in participating,” Buffett said. “While I wouldn’t be thrilled to hand over a billion dollars, I think it will definitely add even more excitement to the college basketball tournament this year.”
The first 15 million qualified entrants to complete the registration process at www.quickenloansbracket.com will be eligible to win the potential grand prize of $1 billion. The window to enter the ‘Quicken Loans Billion Dollar Bracket Challenge with Yahoo Sports’ will end at 1:00 a.m. EDT on Thursday, March 20, 2014 at which time all eligible registrants must have submitted their completed brackets and any other required information.
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About Quicken Loans
Detroit-based Quicken Loans Inc. is the nation’s third largest retail home mortgage lender. The company closed a record $80 billion of volume across all 50 states in 2013. Quicken Loans generates loan production from web centers located in Detroit, Cleveland and Scottsdale, Arizona. The company also operates a centralized loan processing facility in Detroit, as well as its San Diego-based One Reverse Mortgage unit. Quicken Loans ranked #1 in customer satisfaction among all home mortgage lenders in the United States by J.D. Power for the past four consecutive years; 2013, 2012, 2011 and 2010.
Quicken Loans was named among the top-30 companies on FORTUNE magazine’s annual “100 Best Companies to Work For” list for the last 11 consecutive years, ranking #5 in 2014. It ranked in the top-15 of Computerworld magazine’s “100 Best Places to Work In Technology” for the past nine years, ranking #1 in 2013. The company moved its headquarters to downtown Detroit in 2010, and now more than 8,500 of its 10,000-plus team members work in the city’s urban core. For more information about Quicken Loans, please visit www.quickenloans.com, on Twitter at @QLnews, and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/QuickenLoans.
About Yahoo
Yahoo is focused on making the world’s daily habits more inspiring and entertaining. By creating highly personalized experiences for our users, we keep people connected to what matters most to them, across devices and around the world. In turn, we create value for advertisers by connecting them with the audiences that build their businesses. Yahoo is headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., and has offices located throughout the Americas, Asia Pacific (APAC) and the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) regions. For more information, visit the pressroom (pressroom.yahoo.net) or the company’s blog (yahoo.tumblr.com).
About Berkshire Hathaway
Berkshire Hathaway and its subsidiaries engage in diverse business activities including property and casualty insurance and reinsurance, utilities and energy, freight rail transportation, finance, manufacturing, retailing and services. Common stock of the company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, trading symbols BRK.A and BRK.B.