READING, England, February 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

How a young British entrepreneur is opening up the 'longest banner' world record to the public.

24 Year Old James Ackroyd is attempting to create a unique advertising opportunity by commercialising a Guinness world record. His 55.5km, $700,000 banner will prove that some records can be bought, while drawing awareness to 6 different charities.

And it could be coming to a street - make that a motorway - near you soon. When advertisers buy one of the sqm slots for $30, they vote for which country they would like to see the banner in. It's like Eurovision - only this time the biased voting is perfectly acceptable.  

All they need to do is visit http://www.longestbanner.com, which was launched on February 12, and upload their preferred logo/text - it's that simple. Once the online banner is filled the physical banner goes into production using the collected funds to set up.

On the record!

• The 55.5km vinyl banner will cost $700,000 and consist of 50,500 slots.
• Each 100cm x 100cm slot costs $30.
• According to the Guinness World Records, the existing world record for the longest ad banner is 55.4km and held by Rotary International in India.
• With each slot purchase, advertisers vote to determine in which country the banner will be unveiled.
• Advertisers then choose one of six charities to receive a $100,000 donation once the banner is complete.
• The website links advertisers to a one-click vector conversion site. Vector images can be scaled up to any size without losing their quality.
• There's a built in bidding system allowing printers to submit their quotes.  The best will become the official producer and have their name solely associated with printing the banner.  

James Ackroyd:

"As it's an international effort, it couldn't just be set in one country, or otherwise people wouldn't be interested in contributing. The eventual location will need to fulfil two criteria: be media friendly and abundant in space. I'd prefer somewhere warm, as well, so hopefully Greenland doesn't get the most votes, although I'm guessing there won't be a space issue there."

"This is one of the more ambitious projects I've tried to execute, and since the idea came to me, I've been dealing with problems from all angles, but honestly I can't get enough of it. With every business idea, there's always 'problems': some are small and others big enough to capsize everything, but so far they've all been solvable."

"The attention this banner will receive when it reaches completion will more than justify companies and people including their logo. I'm hoping that everyone will see the novelty and advertising potential of adding their own to what could officially become a Guinness world record."

"My daughter was the driving force behind the idea. I realised it was time to do something big, something the world could participate in. More importantly something my daughter would be proud of."

For more information, contact James Ackroyd on +44-(0)7583-441320 or james.ackroyd@ymail.com