Japanese Automaker Blocks Go Daddy Ad from U.S. Open Coverage

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - (BUSINESS WIRE) - Believe it or not, Japanese automaker Lexus is blocking a GoDaddy.com commercial that revolves around Danica Patrick in a vintage American-made car from airing during the United States Open.

Go Daddy was to air its "Speeding" commercial twice during the United States Open this weekend. The ad features Go Daddy Girl Danica Patrick in a vintage, American-made Ford Mustang. Late today, Go Daddy was informed Lexus doesn't want "Speeding" to air. As the exclusive sponsor of the NBC broadcast, Lexus declared no other automakers can be shown in commercials airing during the United States Open.

"This is outrageous," said Go Daddy CEO & Founder Bob Parsons. "Lexus knows our 'Speeding' commercial is NOT about selling cars. GoDaddy.com sells domain name registrations. It seems like they don't want Americans watching the United States Open to see or think about an American-made car in any shape or form. I see it as kicking the American auto industry when it's down."

The commercial was approved by censors and already aired yesterday during rained out broadcast coverage on NBC. The thirty-second ad debuted and aired several times during the Indianapolis 500 broadcast on ABC last month and has aired hundreds of times, including during NBC's Senior PGA and NHL Stanley Cup Finals broadcasts.

In 2005, Go Daddy's first-ever Super Bowl commercial was yanked by the Fox network after airing once during the game because it was deemed inappropriate. Since that time, Go Daddy commercials have drawn criticism and scrutiny from censors for being edgy. Never before, though, have the commercials come under fire for the products they contain. "It is beyond my wildest dreams that one of our commercials would be rejected only because it featured a classic American automobile," said Parsons.

Parsons is a decorated military veteran, known for growing his domain and hosting company into a world leader without outsourcing or off-shoring a single job. He was criticized for throwing a nearly $2MM holiday party for employees in December after a record revenue year in 2008 and argued with the media that spending money is the precisely right move during an economic recession.

The outspoken CEO is active on Twitter as @DrBobParsons and just last night, before this latest controversy, posted a video showing off his new pride and joy - a 2010 SS Camaro made by Chevrolet.

"A recent poll showed 40 percent of those surveyed said recent problems for U.S. automakers made them more likely to buy American," Parsons points out. "I believe an American car deserves to be in the United States Open of all places, but Lexus seems to disagree."

Go Daddy is the world's leading domain name registrar, provides Web hosting and more than 50 products designed to help people and businesses develop an online presence. Most all of Go Daddy's products are developed in-house.

To learn more about Go Daddy visit www.GoDaddy.com.

To see "Speeding" or any other Go Daddy commercial, visit http://videos.GoDaddy.com.

About The Go Daddy Group, Inc.

Go Daddy is a leading provider of services that enable individuals and businesses to establish, maintain and evolve an online presence. Go Daddy provides a variety of domain name registration plans and Web site design and hosting packages, as well as a broad array of on-demand services. These include products such as SSL Certificates, Domains by Proxy private registration, ecommerce Web site hosting, blog templates and blog software, podcast packages and online photo hosting. The Go Daddy Group, Inc. has more than 35 million domain names under management. Go Daddy registers, renews or transfers a domain name every second. GoDaddy.com is the world's No. 1 domain name registrar according to Name Intelligence, Inc. GoDaddy.com is also rated the world's largest hostname provider according to Netcraft Ltd. During 2008, The Go Daddy Group registered more than one-third of all new domain names created in the top six generic top-level domains, or gTLDs, including .com, .net, .org, .info, .biz and .mobi.

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The Go Daddy Group, Inc.
Nick Fuller/Communications Mgr.
623-203-7744
PR@GoDaddy.com