Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MAR) and the National Basketball Association (NBA) announced today a partnership extension that will make the global hotel company a partner of several league events, including NBA House Rio, NBA All-Star, and select NBA Global Games. In addition, Marriott International will become an official partner of USA Basketball.

The partnership will showcase Marriott Rewards, Marriott International, Inc.'s award-winning loyalty program, by bringing the excitement of the NBA directly to its global member community as part of its new Experiences Marketplace. Members will be able to redeem their Marriott Rewards points for exclusive NBA and USA Basketball experiences during NBA House Rio, NBA Global Games, NBA All-Star, and the 2016 USA Basketball Showcase presented by Verizon. Experiences will include NBA and USA Basketball legend and player meet-and-greets, exclusive receptions featuring basketball-themed entertainment and giveaways, and the opportunity to serve as ball boys or ball girls during upcoming games.

Marriott will also bring fans custom NBA- and USA Basketball-themed content featuring legends and current players that will be shared across the brand's social channels.

"This partnership with the NBA is an amazing opportunity for us to provide our Marriott Rewards members and hotel guests who are passionate about basketball with enriching and exclusive experiences," said Karin Timpone, Global Marketing Officer, Marriott International. "The NBA is widely popular around the globe and is a perfect partner to showcase our portfolio to current and future Marriott Rewards members for several years to come."

"Marriott has done an outstanding job of engaging their millions of global Rewards members around many of our marquee league events," said Emilio Collins, NBA Executive Vice President, Global Marketing Partnerships. "With our new expanded partnership, they're raising the bar and extending the reach of our partnership to more programs, and even more fans, around the world."

In addition to game-day Marketplace opportunities, Marriott Rewards will offer several NBA-themed sweepstakes and promotions, including a series of player meet-and-greets across its global portfolio of 19 brands.

Marriott Rewards members will continue to enjoy program benefits long after the final buzzer including Member Rates, Marriott's lowest guaranteed rate when they book directly on Marriott channels, free Wi-Fi, mobile check-in and check-out, and at participating properties, mobile requests – all on the Marriott Mobile app. To learn more about Marriott Rewards, visit: www.MarriottRewards.com.

About the NBA

The NBA is a global sports and media business built around three professional sports leagues: the National Basketball Association, the Women's National Basketball Association, and the NBA Development League. The league has established a major international presence with games and programming in 215 countries and territories in 49 languages, and NBA merchandise for sale in more than 125,000 stores in 100 countries on 6 continents. NBA rosters at the start of the 2015-16 season featured 100 international players from 37 countries and territories. NBA Digital's assets include NBA.com and the NBA app, which achieved record traffic during the 2014-15 season, as well as NBA TV. The NBA has created one of the largest social media communities in the world, with more than one billion likes and followers globally across all league, team, and player platforms. Through NBA Cares, the league addresses important social issues by working with internationally recognized youth-serving organizations that support education, youth and family development, and health-related causes.

About Marriott International

Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MAR) is based in Bethesda, Maryland, USA, and encompasses a portfolio of more than 8,100 properties under 30 leading brands spanning 139 countries and territories. Marriott operates and franchises hotels and licenses vacation ownership resorts all around the world. The company offers Marriott Bonvoy®, its highly awarded travel program. Connect with us on Facebook and @MarriottIntl on Twitter and Instagram.

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