Live Earth: Against Climate Change with smart

- The Biggest Music Event of all Time Launches Tomorrow

- smart Is the Official Partner of all Eight Concerts

- smart Comes to the USA in the First Quarter of 2008

NEW YORK, July 6 -- The countdown for the world's largest fund-raising event in pop and rock music history has begun: Tomorrow afternoon, the Live Earth concerts against global warming are to start and offer life music for a period of 24 hours across eight cities and on all continents.

Bon Jovi, Genesis, John Mayer, Madonna, Shakira and The Police -- more than 100 top international acts are to mobilize against the threat of climate change for 24 hours. With smart, DaimlerChrysler is the only car manufacturer to support the "Save Our Selves -- SOS" initiative launched by Kevin Wall and Al Gore and is the official partner of all eight concerts. smart is accompanying the climate protection initiative with a range of activities and is providing the official shuttle service for the concerts.

"We care" -- this is the motto the automobile manufacturer is using in its support for the climate protection initiative. "In environmental protection what matters most is what people do as individuals. It's about making conscious decisions and asking questions about specific matters. Initiating this movement is the fundamental idea of the smart brand. smart came about because we asked ourselves what the car of the future should look like -- how much space it can take up in our cities and how fast it should be able to drive, what kind of stress can it place on the environment. For this reason it is simply consistent that we are committing ourselves to an event such as Live Earth," said Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of DaimlerChrysler AG and head of the Mercedes Car Group.

Environmentally-friendly shuttle service

DaimlerChrysler is operating the official shuttle service for the artists and celebrity guests -- with the most environmentally friendly fleet which sets new benchmarks for CO2 emissions worldwide. At the concert in Hamburg, Germany, for example, smart fortwo cdi (diesel) and Mercedes-Benz E 320 BLUETEC vehicles will be used to bring the artists to their performances and back to their hotels in an environmental friendly manner.

At only 88 grams per kilometer, the smart fortwo cdi has the world's lowest CO2 emissions -- and is thus the CO2-World-champion. It is the only car produced in a large series which actually has fuel consumption of only three liters for 100 kilometers. The Mercedes-Benz E 320 BLUETEC is the world's cleanest diesel vehicle in the premium segment which was launched in the U.S. in October 2006. BLUETEC provides innovative modular emission technology which DaimlerChrysler has taken to production level, reducing the emissions of diesel drives down to the level of gasoline engines.

Global advertising campaign and special smart website

Since the end of June, smart's climate protection commitment has been accompanied by an international advertising campaign in TV and print media and a special, interactive website in seven languages. The objective of this measure is to create a new sense of awareness. "We want to encourage thinking about one's own mobility behavior and to act more responsibly," explained Anders Jensen, Vice President for Marketing & Sales at smart. Thus the TV spots and print advertisements raise fundamental issues -- for example: Is size the measure of all things? Are 200 HP really necessary for a driver? Why use two liters of petrol to get a liter of milk? On the interactive website it is possible to publish one's own answers to these questions. In addition, the website offers extensive information on the Live Earth concerts, on the issue of "Ecological driving" and on the smart brand. The micro site address is www.smart.com/liveearth.

The concerts -- the launch of a global movement

Live Earth is a project of the "Save Our Selves -- SOS" initiative of Kevin Wall, who has already organized Live Aid concerts, and the former American Vice President, Al Gore. The objective is to start a global movement by mobilizing more than two billion people in the battle against climate change. The group event is the starting point for a campaign over many years headed by the Alliance for Climate Protection and other non-governmental organizations.

All eight Live Earth concerts will be broadcast via television, radio and internet in more than 120 countries. The only concert in the U.S. starts at 2:30 pm at New York's Giants Stadium. The following artists are to perform: AFI, Akon, Alicia Keys, Bon Jovi, Dave Matthews Band, Fall Out Boy, John Mayer, Kanye West, Kelly Clarkson, KT Tunstall, Ludacris, Melissa Etheridge, Roger Waters, Smashing Pumpkins and The Police.

smart comes to the USA in 2008

Since its introduction in October 1998, nearly 800,000 people in 36 countries have made the smart fortwo the "in" car for fuel-efficient urban transportation. As a DaimlerChrysler brand, smart benefits from the parent company's engineering expertise and many years of experience in the automotive industry. The new smart fortwo was released in Europe in April 2007 and will become available in the U.S. for the first time in the first quarter of 2008. smart -- as one of the industry's youngest brands -- stands for innovation, functionality and lust for life. Drivers of smart vehicles can be categorized more in terms of their attitudes than their age, profession or gender.