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NEW YORK (CBS/AP) ― The city's tourism office is officially launching its first major international advertising effort Wednesday, aiming to sell potential visitors a new New York, one that is as much the birthplace of hip-hop as it is the home of the Empire State Building.

The campaign is part of an ambitious strategy in the last year to promote New York City around the globe. The tourism office, NYC & Company, already has bureaus in places like Dublin, Buenos Aires and London, and plans to open a total of eight offices in 2007, from Toronto to Tokyo.

Despite its reputation as a top destination, the city has never before embarked on a global ad campaign -- relying instead on smaller, local efforts in foreign countries.

At stake are billions of dollars. Some 44 million people visited the city in 2006, generating an estimated $24 billion for the local economy. Mayor Michael Bloomberg has said he would like the city to reach the goal of 50 million annual tourists by 2015.

The new ad campaign is expected to launch by the fall, said George Fertitta, CEO of NYC & Company.

When Fertitta appears Wednesday in Berlin to formally announce details of the plans, Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion will be at his side to speak about the cultural riches of his home turf. The appearance is part of a new five-borough strategy to market the diversity of the city and broaden its appeal for return-visitors and others.

"We're going to be letting people know that New York City is not just about Manhattan," said Fertitta, a former advertising executive. "There is a vibrancy to all five boroughs."

"In addition to Times Square and the Statue of Liberty ... people also need to come to New York and see how real New Yorkers live in their neighborhoods," said Carrion, who touts the Bronx's multicultural population and its history as the birthplace of hip-hop.

The organization will help each borough develop a distinct public persona, then will aid in marketing, Fertitta said.

The new policy echoes a mantra that has become central to the organization's efforts, Fertitta said: "There's only one New York, but there is no ONE New York."

Since Fertitta took the helm at NYC & Company in June, the organization has opened offices in Dublin, Milan, Madrid, Stockholm, Moscow and Amsterdam. Offices were previously in place in London, Munich, Paris, Mexico and Buenos Aires, Fertitta said.

He said NYC & Company has also begun negotiations with the Chinese government to hire representatives there before 2008, probably in both Beijing and Shanghai. The city would be joining a limited roster of American destinations that have permission to operate in the Communist nation, which has not yet approved mass advertising by the U.S.

With so many offices, the city's physical international presence will dwarf that of other American destinations such as Las Vegas and San Francisco. NYC & Company's employees at the foreign offices work with travel professionals and local media to grab more attention for the city.

Smaller campaigns this winter encouraged residents of Dublin and London to "shop while the dollar drops." Other overseas advertising efforts included promoting New York's Olympics bid, but those campaigns were privately financed and not done by NYC & Company.

A recent infusion of $15 million in annual funding from the city will finance the latest endeavors. That will allow the city to catch up to other major U.S destinations in an increasingly competitive marketplace, said Lalia Rach, Associate Dean of the Tisch Center for Hospitality and Tourism at New York University.

"It is catching up -- because the money was not there," she said. "No city, no destination, can live on its laurels -- can live on what it assumes is its place in the market."

NYC & Company's total yearly budget of $45 million is still a fraction of that of Las Vegas, where the Convention and Visitors Authority has close to $85 million to spend on advertising that has made "what happens here, stays here" a household phrase.

The gambling mecca is also embarking on its first international advertising campaign, said spokeswoman Erika Pope. In fiscal year 2007, more than $5 million is slotted for ads in Mexico and the United Kingdom, she said.

The focus on foreign visitors is no accident, said Jonathan Tisch, chairman of the Board of Directors of NYC & Company.

"The international traveler stays longer and spends more money," he said.

(© 2007 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)