American Express - American Express has enhanced its industry leading broad-based Membership Rewards program by adding popular retail and travel partners and allowing customers to redeem points for more of the things they want. Among the latest offerings, enrollees can now redeem points for Apple iTunes downloadable to an iPod music player. Apple iTunes are a smash hit with music fans featuring more than 2 million songs from major music companies, independent labels and individual artists alike. The 2006 Membership Rewards program also includes:

Retail partners, such as Blockbuster, Cole Haan, L'Occitane, Talbots

Travel partners, such as AirTran Airways, Loews Hotels and Preferred Hotel Group

Merchandise brands, such as Bushnell, Davidoff, Dunhill, iRobot, Kate Spade, Kenneth Cole Reaction, Logitech, Montblanc, Monster; and

Sports and Adventure partners, such as Troon Golf and ESPN Golf Schools Presented by Lexus.

These latest choices are among the hundreds of redemption options that span the program's Travel, Shopping and Dining & Entertainment categories.

In 2005, the program offered a new benefit that allows Cardmembers to book travel using Membership Rewards points instantly on the American Express travel website without blackout dates or restrictions for airlines, hotels or cruises at americanexpress.com/travel.

The Membership Rewards program is the largest card-based rewards program in the world, with more than 140 redemption partners. In addition, Cardmembers can use their points to redeem for over 2 million products online through the ShopAmex portion of the Membership Rewards website. The program allows Cardmembers to earn one point for virtually every dollar charged on eligible, enrolled American Express Cards.

Many American Express Card products offer the ability to earn double bonus points for purchases in Everyday Spend categories that include supermarkets, gas stations, drugstores, U.S. Postal Service and wireless phone bill payments. Membership Rewards points are redeemable in a wide selection of reward categories, including travel, retail merchandise, dining and entertainment, shopping and recreation gift certificates, unique experiences, financial services and charity rewards. Enrollees may also customize their own redemption experiences through the program's Your Reward option and use points for just about anything they can imagine.

Points have no expiration date, and there is no limit on the number of points you can earn.

The 2006 Membership Rewards redemption partners and options are:

Airlines: Aeromexico, Aeroplan, Air France, Air Jamaica, AirTran Airways, Alitalia, All Nippon Air-ways (ANA), Cathay Pacific Airways, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, EL AL Israel Airlines, Frontier Airlines, GlobalPass, Hawaiian Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Mexicana Airlines, Qantas, South African Airways, Southwest Airlines, SWISS and Virgin Atlantic Airways.

Car Rentals and Rail: Amtrak, Avis, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Hertz and Rail Europe.

Charities: More than 1,000,000 charitable organizations through americanexpress.com/donate, an online giving portal.

Dining & Entertainment: AMC Theatres, American Express Be My Guest Dining Cards, Benihana, Blockbuster, Broad­way.com, By Invitation Only Events for Platinum Cardmembers, The Capital Grille, CityPass, Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, Gold Card Events, Hollywood Movie Money, iTunes, Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, Inc., LIVE NATION, Loews Cineplex, McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants, The Melting Pot, Morton's, The Steakhouse, Restaurant Associates, Roy's, Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group, Telecharge.com, Ticketmaster, Tribeca Film Festival, US Open Tennis Championships and Your Reward.

Hotels: Best Western Gold Crown Club International; Fairmont Hotels & Resorts; Hilton HHonors (Hilton, Conrad, Coral by Hilton, Doubletree, Embassy Suites Hotels, Hampton Inn, Hampton Inn & Suites, Hilton Garden Inn, Hilton Grand Vacations Club, Homewood Suites by Hilton, and Scandic); Marriott International (Marriott Hotels, Resorts and Suites, Renaissance Hotels & Resorts, Courtyard by Marriott, Residence Inn by Marriott, Fairfield Inn by Marriott, TownePlace Suites by Marriott, Spring Hill SuitesTM by Marriott); Omni Hotels; Hyatt Hotels & Resorts; Priority Club Rewards (InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites); Starwood Preferred Guest, (Westin Hotel & Resorts, Sheraton Hotels & Resorts, Four Points by Sheraton, St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, W Hotels, Le Meridien) and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Preferred Hotel Group (Preferred Hotels & Resorts and Summit Hotels & Resorts), Loews Hotels.

Merchandise: Some top brands represented include All-Clad, Bang & Olufsen, Baume & Mercier, Bodum, Bose, Bowflex, Callaway Golf, Canon, Cobra, Creative, De'Longhi, Dyson, Fuji, Jabra, JVC, KitchenAid, Lagos, Le Creuset, Maui Jim, Nike Golf, Omas, Oreck, Panasonic, Pentax, PHILIPS, Reidel, Samsonite, Samsung, Sony, Swarovski, TAG Heuer, TaylorMade, The Northface, Toshiba, Trek, Tumi, Villeroy & Boch, Waterford, Wilson.

Other: American Express Gift Cheques, American Express Travelers Cheques, AwardPlanner and MileageManager, Link2Gov (pay1040.com/mr), Official Payments Corp. (officialpayments.com/mr), and USA TODAY.

Retail: Babies"R"Us, Banana Re­pub­lic, Bloomingdale's, Brooks Brothers, Cole Haan, Crate and Barrel, Dell Computer, Red Door Spas, ESCADA, FTD.COM, Fortunoff, Gap, Gloss.com, Lands' End, Linens ?n Things, L'Occitane, PB Teen, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, Restoration Hardware, Saks Fifth Avenue, Smith & Hawken, ShopAmex, Spa finder, Staples, Steiner Sports, Talbots, The Home Depot, The Sharper Image, Tourneau, Toys"R"Us, and 800wine.com.

Sports and Adventure: Abercrombie & Kent, American Skiing Company, Aspen/Snowmass, Butterfield & Robinson, Epiculinary, ESPN Golf Schools Presented by Lexus, Golf Academy of Hilton Head Island at Sea Pines, Intrawest Mountain Resorts, Lake Austin Spa, Mountain Travel Sobek, Moorings, NauticBlue, O.A.R.S, Richard Petty Driving Experience, SeaWorld and Busch Gardens Adventure Parks, Troon Golf, Skip Barber Racing School, Space Adventures Ltd., Tauck World Discovery, Universal Golf Ticket, Universal Ski Ticket and Vail Resorts, Van Der Meer Tennis.