T-Mobile has launched its Live the Rock Life text-to-win program to promote its new 3G Sidekick LX handset, offering entrants the chance to party like a rock star with punk-pop band blink-182.

Consumers are asked to text the keyword ROCKLIFE to the short code 95495 for the chance to win one of 10 first-prize awards or the grand prize of partying with blink-182 and $20,000. T-Mobile?s text-centric Sidekick handset has remained popular among the younger demographics, which consider SMS the best way to communicate.

?T-Mobile created the Live the Rock Life with blink-182 sweepstakes to drive consumer awareness towards the launch of the new 3G Sidekick LX,? said Derek Chang, director of sponsorships and promotions at T-Mobile USA, Bellevue, WA.

?We partnered with a well-known band to create a once-in-a-lifetime experience through a simple text-to-win promotion,? he said. ?T-Mobile and its Sidekick franchise have always stayed top-of-mind with the youth demographic. 

?This group is constantly bombarded with new brands and experiences that try to capture their attention.?

T-Mobile USA is a wireless carrier that tends to compete in price and market heavily to a younger demographic.

The new 3G Sidekick LX is the latest and greatest in the T-Mobile family of Sidekicks, boasting a sleeker design, full QWERTY keyboard and, most importantly, third-generation processing power.

To keep the top-of-mind status with this coveted demographic, T-Mobile has pulled out all the stops for this campaign, offering a wide range of indulgences as part of the grand prize.

The lucky winner of the Live the Rock Life sweepstakes will win $20,000, a first-class trip to Los Angeles with what T-Mobile has dubbed as ?Fave Five? (five friends of the winner) and accommodations at a private Hollywood estate complete with a butler and chef.

Not only that, but the grand-prize winner will also get the chance to hang with blink-182 during a sound check, ride with the band in their tour bus, sit at a VIP table during the blink-182 Hollywood concert and receive band gear signed by the rock group. 

The grand-prize winner will also win a new 3G Sidekick LX handset, as well as five more for his or her Fave Five. The winner will also pocket $1,820 for a shopping spree at The Fast Life, a Los Angeles clothing retailer.

The Live the Rock Life sweepstakes is being promoted through retail appearances with the band, promotional advertising in retail locations, street teams and numerous social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter.

?T-Mobile's core is based on mobile communication,? Mr. Chang said. ?The Live the Rock Life with blink-182 sweepstakes allows us to implement a nationwide mobile campaign based on texting, which is how our core audience communicates on a daily basis. 

?People are consistently shifting their online access portals from laptops and computers to handheld mobile devices,? he said.

?T-Mobile Sidekick understood that creating not only an SMS text-to-win campaign but also a promotion that involves entering online or in-person at retail locations, we would be able to reach a wide array of blink-182 fans and music enthusiasts who can enter at their own leisure and convenience.?