*SPRING SEMESTER 2006* POST YOUR WEEKLY "SBJ" CRITIQUE HERE!!!
HI GUYS,
WELCOME BACK AND I HOPE YOU ARE ALL READY FOR THIS EXCITING AND CHALLENGING SEMESTER. HERE IS THE PLACE FOR YOU GUYS TO POST YOUR WEEKLY "SBJ" CRITIQUE FOR SPRING 2006 (DEADLINE IS EVERY THURSDAY BEFORE NOON). I HOPE YOU ENJOY THE CLASS AND LEARN SOMETHING. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT ME. I USUALLY WILL RETURN YOUR EMAIL IN 12 HOURS.
posted by Dr. Richard Hsiao @ Friday, January 20, 2006
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Hockey Exec Puts Money in Rodeo Volume 8, Issue 37 Page 9
Jac Sperling has made a major investment change. Former vice chairman of Minnesota's wildcats and also the club's CEO, has now started Grit Rock Ventures an investment firm in which he has decided to purchase the rights to the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Associations top professional events the Wrangler Pro Rodeo Tour and Pace Picante ProRodeo Tour finale he got through a license in Colorado Springs. Sperling who had previously helped build two National Hockey League arenas decided to also buy the Weatherford, Texas based World's Toughest Bulls and Broncs Tour. Jac Sperling feels that the rodeo business is out their ready to explode it just hasn't got the correct amount of coverage and hasn't been promoted properly. Jac Sperling stated "I really believe that the brand for rodeo is a very strong brand in the mind of consumers but has not really been developed to its full potential." Grit Rock Ventures has already negotiated a new cable deal for the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association moving their events from OLN to the Fox Sports Network and he has also increase the amount of televised events from 14 in previous years to 20 this coming season. The Professional Rodeo Cowboys association has already changed to a new advertiser in hopes of getting better promotion. I thought this was a very interestting article of how Jac Sperling would invest money to build two NHL arenas and then completely switch to bull riding events. I think this is a very intelligent idea because most likely more guys watch bull riding then anything and I think they will get many more interested if its advertised better and on more often. Its a contact sport like football kinda and guys like that rough and tough stuff where people are getting thrown in the air or even getting trampled as horrible as it sounds its true. I think their will be defintely an increase in viewers I think what they need now is some different events then racing around barrels and tying up calfs. They need something more exciting and dangerous to attract even more viewers.
January 23-29, 2006
Volume 8, Issue 37, page 4
"Rockets latest to put interactive upstairs"
This article is about how NBA teams are putting new interactive fan areas in their arenas. The Houston Rockets were more recent team to do this. They converted an old storage area into a place where fans can go and "get to know" the players better. They have life size pictures of the players so people can see how short they are compared to them.
The Rockets are not the first team have this idea. Many NBA teams have similar areas in their arenas. The Phoenix Suns have a playground and Clevland and Philadelphia have smaller interactive areas.
Teams are doing this to increase profits, inventories, and sponsopships. I think this is a great idea to attract more people to come to games, especially younger children. I also think this will lead to bigger and better things in the future. As of now they have a few things to attract kids, but it mentioned in the article that the Rockets are also building a new club in the upper suite areas for special events. I think that this is more directed towards adults than children.
Jani King, Sentient Jet sign multiyear deals with the PGA Tour Volume 8, issue 36, page 6
This article was about Jani King and Sentient Jet signing a multiyear deal with the PGA. Jani King is a cleaning service that has more than 11,000 franchises throughout the world. This is a good idea for them because they are already a very well known company. Through their sponsorship with the PGA, this might make them even more known throughout the world. But, the one thing that confuses me is that they are a cleaning company, and why the PGA would want to be sponsored by them. My guess is that the PGA has a deal with them to be their cleaning company for whatever reason.
Sentient Jet is a private jet membership, and I see why this is a better fit because the golfers have to play in many different locations. The deal that was agreed on was that the airline will provide short notice availabilities for golfers on tour cut days. So I believe that this is a good fit with both companies because golfers do need to travel and the cleaning company will help also.
Jan 30, 2006
Volume 8, Issue 38, Page 37
This article is about Super Bowl parties that are being hosted by magazines such as Maxim, Playboy and Sports Illustrated just to name a few. The article states that getting into these parties is just as big as getting tickets to the Super Bowl."Men in their 40's and 50's want to relive their wild and crazy single days."
In addition, the magazines do not want their parties to portray trashy girls so they are promoting "tasteul sex appeal." Alot of men also want to hang out with celebrities in hip trendy nightclubs. These tickets are not for sale but are given to VIP's and advertisers. I feel this is just another good way for magazines to bring men to their party to promote their name and also bring money for the company as well. There will always be ways for companies to make money and what better opportunity than the Super Bowl.
"Steelers' arrival is solid gold for licensed goods"
Vol. 8 Issue 38 pg. 1
This article talks about how the NFL and their licensees are excited that the Pittsburgh Steelers'are playing this Sunday in Superbowl XL. It has been suspected that with the Steelers' still playing that merchandise sales will hit an all time high. Mark Holtzman, NFLs consumer Products senior vice president said this could be the biggest superbowl ever with the Steelers' "deep roots and national following". The article goes on to say how the Steelers sell more licensed products within a 75 mile radius than any other team. It also suggests that the era of the Steel Curtain still hold alot of people as steeler fans around the nation. The article states that after the AFC championship game McArthur towels recieved an additional 200,000 orders for the Terrible Towel and plan to order 300,000 after the bowl. Licensees around the country are excited by the huge market that the Pittsburgh Steelers are making that could surpass all previous. They are also optimistic about the Seahawks being that it is their first trip to the superbowl.
"Kobe comes through in clutch for TV"
Vol.8 issue 38 pg. 8
This article is about how Kobe Bryant’s latest scoring spree has sparked the ratings for the NBA. Kobe has averaged an amazing 42 points per game for the last 10 games and capped that off with an astonishing 81 point outbreak against the Toronto Raptors. There is a graph at the bottom of the article that shows how many items were sold on EBay related to Bryant. On Friday there was 172 items related to him sold, and by Monday (after the 81 point game) the number skyrocketed to 608 items. Video of Bryant’s 81 point game has already been made available for download on Google Video Store. Turner Sports spokesman Jeff Pomeroy said that they were definitely planning on doing more story lines around Kobe during the All-Star game to boost ratings.
I think all of this is a good idea and a good thing for the NBA. I am a huge basketball fan but I can’t even watch a pointless regular season game. I am also a Los Angeles fan, so I’m glad to see Kobe doing so well. Fans need a reason to watch the games sometimes, especially when it’s a long 82 game season. Watching a player score 40 plus points a game on a regular basis is a pretty good reason. Fans haven’t had someone that consistent since Michael Jordan. It’s very smart on the NBA’s part to use this to their advantage to market the league.
Kobe doesn’t have a good track record because of his charges in Colorado and his problems with past teammates, but most fans just want to be entertained. As long as Kobe is doing this, people will watch and enjoy and slowly forget about his past. There are many great athletes with bad pasts, but their performances always cover up their mistakes.
"High Level Suit Rocks N.Y. Knicks" Vol 8 (38) Pg 6 By Carinne (Carri) Cole
The New York Knicks Basketball Franchise has been suffering slightly with ticket sales and fan attendance at games. They are also suffering on the basketball court with a record of 13-27 as of last Thursday. The Knicks have also only claimed a playoff spot once in the past four years. Unfortunately these problems commonly seen among a franchise such as this are only the tip of the ice burg. Last week a former employee of the franchise, Anucha Sanders, filed a sexual harassment claim against New York Knicks President Isiah Thomas. Sanders who was senior vice president of marking for the Knicks, claims that Thomas sexually harassed her and that she was then fired for her complaints of discrimination. Thomas has denied these claims.
This article is very appropriate for our class discussion this week. We began the chapter on Ethics and this is a great example of unethical behavior in sport business. Ethics is defined in the Encarta Dictionary as “consistent with agreed principles of correct moral conduct.” Sexual harassment and discrimination are illegal, but they also are not consistent with correct moral conduct. These types of behaviors are seen often in the rich and powerful of organizations. For some reason, some think that because of the position they hold they are above the law. We can not jump to conclusions because Isiah Thomas has not been charged guilty, but he is only one of many who have faced this situation in the past. Ethical behavior and morals seem to have taken a backseat in our society and especially in those who hold high positions. It is a shame that after all the examples we’ve seen of people being charged with such disgraceful behavior, people still abuse their power and influence.
"$20M will bring the Strip to Vegas infield"
Vol 8, Issue 38, Page 3
I choose this article because there aren't that many NASCAR fans out there. I used to be a big fan going to at least 3 races a year, but I've sort of grown out of it. This article was interesting to me though and I really like what they are doing for the sport.
The Las Vegas Motor Speedway is building a new fan area in the infield. This allows fans to be interactive with the drivers and crews. I think this a great idea to bring new fans more into the sport. The Las Vegas infield is going to replicate the real strip of Las Vegas. It is supposed to have the feeling of a hotel lobby. It is going to have a theme park type atmposhere including live music. There is even going to be a spa and work out room for the drivers wives.
These new renovations are going to cost approximately $20 million dollars, which means admission prices could rise. Daytona also did something similar to this, but they charged an extra $85 to enter. Vegas hasn't decided on a price yet, but they will have a seperate admission or it can be included in a 3-day package.
They are also increasing the banks on the track turns from 12 to 20 degrees. This is going to closer, more competitive racing. And more competitive racing is what fans want. The more the fans are happy, the more they will come, and the more they will use the new interactive area. Daytona has been very successful and Las Vegas plans on doing the same.
I agree with this renovation move. I think it will attract more people and bring in more revenue. It could help change non-NASCAR fans perspective on the sport and hopefully make them realize that NASCAR really is a "sport" and get an appreciation for it.
She won in Guatemala, but will she be a sports Broadcasting survivor?
Volume 8,issue38 Pg.38
I choose this article because it gave a braod opinion on how people have control over your life once you sign a contract.
This article talks about Danni Boatwright(winner on guatemala survivor, also a former beauty queen, in Kansas City)wanting to become a sport radio voice. But because she first has to go through CBS she is limited to offers to attain. She recieved a offer to co-host the ESPN New Years Eve Bash, a time square rock first network productions event but she had to let them down because CBS would not allow her to interact in the event.In her words CBS is very strict. She has also been offered positions to be sideline report and sports anchor for local television stations in her home town(Kansas City).But the "gigs" are said to be put on hold at this times.CBS has yet to give any commitment yet. With the blessing of CBS she has be allowed to appear as a guest commentator on ESPN Classic's " Classic Now". Stated by Michael Keck "we would love to keep Danni Boatwright involved with the station beyond this point". But neither parties have come to any negotiations at this point, meaning ESPN,CBS nor Boatwright. Also in a conversation between D. Boatwright and CBS sports spokewoman Leslie Anne Wade, Wade explains that its competitive working for CBS and its a process that would take some time.
Through all this non decision making, Boatwright replies she wants to remain in her home town and become the sports broadcaster and represent the Cheifs and Kansas Jayhawks.
This article opens the issue of there's always a catch to a contract whether its in small print or non existing...
"Flaws in NFL's minority hiring policy hinder progress" vol 8. issue 38. pg 29
In the NFL each team must interview at least one minority candidate for coaching vacancies. In the last week this minority hiring process was not met. There were no new minority coaches chosen to fill any of the league's recent head coaching vacancies.
I don't exactly agree with this process. Anybody can apply for these positions but if a white person has better crudentials and has more qualifications for the job, then why must a minority be interviewed. Same goes for the other way around. It should not go by color as to who to hire. It should go by experience and knowledge of the position. Just because it happened to be that one minority wasn't interviewed last week to fulfill the position of coaching vacancies, I don't think that it needs to be turned into a racial argument.
In most of these positions that are being filled, the people who interview for them are usually known somewhere by networking. So before they even get called in for the interview, the interviewers already have an idea who they are interviewing. Which could cause some problems with this minority process. As long as the hiring process doesn't just get turned into a racial thing, then hiring the best person out there for the job shouldn't matter what color skin they have. It's good that they do have this minority process but just for the fact that one time they didn't interview a minority, I do not think it needs to be turned into a racial problem. This process usually is a good one, but with this kind of thing there will always be a racial problem somewhere down the line.
"In Detroit, ABC crew readies big finish for it's NFL coverage" volume 8 issue 38 page 29
I chose this article because the article talks about the tv crew for ABC bringing super 40 to Detriot. I am a big steeler fan so thats what caught my eye because they were going to be covering the steelers this sunday. ABC has been covering monday night football for over 36 football seasons which is amazing to me because they have been doing it for so long.
For the Super Bowl this sunday there will be an estimate of 130 million dometic viewers and a worldwide audience for an estimated by the NFL of one billion people watching the super bowl. Even though the players should be the only ones that are a little nervous, you have to think about the crew for ABC doing the broadcast. If a player makes a mistake there is always another play coming up to redeem themseleves, but for the camera men/women and producers of ABC if they mess up you will definitely notice the problem in front of an estimated one billion people across the world. If a lineman messes up in the game and misses a blocking assignment i will bet that a lot of viewers do not catch the mistake by the faulty lineman, but right soon the producers click to the wrong camera angle it can cause problems.
ABC also said that there will be an additional four cameras specifically for defining replay views of in-bounds and out-of bounds situation for the game this Sunday. I think that is a great idea because during the colts game three weeks ago , the officails almost blew the game for us on a clearly intercepted pass from Troy Palomalu. More cameras and more angels cannot hurt anything espically if it is going to be the biggest game of the year.
"Flexible Scheduling Details" vol. 8 issue 38 page 36
It is very interesting to see that the NFL has decided to allow games to be switched around to provide better televised games late in the season. Although it is only currently allowed for sunday afternoon games to be switched to prime-time. I find this very intriguing first from a perspective of the other networks. Even though they do have some protection against changes, it is very little. I think that both CBS and FOX will complain when they lose a good match-up to NBC. These networks shell out a lot of money to televise games and there is no way they will sit by idle when a game between 2 top teams is switched with a game between 2 of the worst teams.
It also will be interesting to see how this effects fans that travel to a teams away games. Many fans, ecspecially those of west coast teams, are forced to fly if they want to see their team in action. It can become very tricky for making flight plans if you dont necessarily know when a game will begin or end. This situation will only get more difficult if Thursday, Saturday, and Monday games are made available to change as i feel they will be in the future.
Along with the change of games, the number of times a team can appear on primetime was increased to 5, possibly 6. This may lead to many owners complaining if their team does not get primetime games, and can lose the ones they have to teams that may have already played 3 or 4 times on a national stage. It seems that these changes will only benefit fans watching games at home, and NBC/ESPN, networks that hold the rights to broadcast nationally.
"Steelers arrival is solid gold for licensed goods"
Vol 8. issue 38
This article is about how the merchandise sales of steeler products have increased since the AFC championship game and how much they expect them to increase all over the country if the steelers win the super bowl. I do agree with this because the steelers are a very popular team nationwide, having fans from all over the country. This article impacts sports management mostly in the part of merchandising since there is such an expected increase in product sales it impacts this aspect of sport management. The president of team beans/ forever collectables expects a 40-50% increase on all steeler team merchandise.
"Kobe come through in clutch for TV" vol 8. issue 38
The article mainly talks about how many of the television network ratings took off after Kobe scored a career high 81 points. I totally agree with everything this article said. I thought that the NBA TV ratings at the time were fairly low due to the time of the year when football playoffs are on, but also there wasn't much excitement going on around the NBA either. That is until Kobe dropped 81 points. When this happened it had a huge effect on the networks that were showing Laker's games because more people were tuning in just to watch Kobe. Also this had an impact on NBA games as a whole.
I felt that this had a huge impact on the the sports industry because as soon as this happened the marketers were well aware to start advertising apparel and video footage of Kobe Bryant. These products are quickly selling as you would expect.
This event that took place will be having people talking about Kobe Bryant for a long time. So overall, this effected not only marketers and tv stations, but also the average person as well.
Jacob White Volume 8 Issue 38 January 30-February 5, 2006 Page 3
NFL Owners Approve $20M for Superdome
The National Football League (NFL) has conditionally approved $20 million for the renovation of the Louisiana Superdome. The vote, which was unanimous, was very important in helping the Saints actually stay in New Orleans. There are still some issues to be resolved, however. The biggest issue is the negotiation with the state of Louisiana, as the Superdome is owned by the state. This problem must be resolved before the transaction can be completed.
The important thing is that the Saints do, in fact, want to rebuild and stay in New Orleans. This comes after many suspected owner Tom Benson to want to move his team to San Antonio permanently. Dennis Lauscha, the Saints’ chief financial officer, explained that the Saints are committed and building. He also said that the renovation money is excellent in terms of getting the building process moving. Hope still remains for a full season to be played in the Superdome this year.
The take from the NFL is a little different, however. Roger Goddell, NFL chief operating officer, says that the league expects the Saints to be in New Orleans next year, but also realizes that every day with no formal funding deal with the state of Louisiana means that it is less likely that a full season will be played next year. The Saints “home” games were played in the Alamodome and LSU’s stadium, but attendance was very poor.
I think the money for the renovation is a great step for the city of New Orleans. I also think that a funding plan with the state of Louisiana is very important. The Saints need to stay in the Superdome not only for the team to have a real home arena and a solid fan base, but for the city as well. This city has already been through enough, the last thing they need is to lose their beloved Saints, regardless of how poor the team has played in the past five years.
Volume 8 Issue 38 pg29
"Flaw’s in NFL’s minority hiring policy hinder progress."
This article discusses the process that NFL teams have to go through while filling a coaching vacancy. Paul Tagliabue, the NFL’s commissioner, requires that a team interview at least one minority when hiring a new coach. This has been a heavy disputed topic recently because there was 10 teams that needed a new coach after this past season and there was only one minority, Herman Edwards, that was hired. Edwards moved from the Jets, who had a disappointing season, to the Chiefs, who feel that there future is bright and Edwards is the man to lead them to the next level due to his credentials.
While looking at the article and the coaches chosen to represent the 9 teams with a new coach (the Raiders are still undecided), I only recognize 4 of them. The article states how the first step is to stop labeling particular subjects as “black coaches” because it conveys segregation. But wouldn’t this whole process do that? I know one former “black coach” that deserves a head-coaching job is Mike Singletary; and I’m hoping the Raiders choose him. I agree with the process of the minority interview obligation, but who is to say that the people in charge even consider these candidates? I know if I were the head of an organization I wouldn’t care if the person was black, white, green, or blue, I would hire the most qualified candidate because I’d take success mixed with criticism any day. The same thing happened last year when Notre Dame needed a new coach. Everyone thought it was a big deal because Tyrone Willingham, their former “black coach” was fired and replaced by Charlie Weiss. They were bashed for the whole process, but in the end it was easy to see the success he brought them.
Volume 8 Issue 38 page 8
"Kobe comes through in clutch for TV"
This article is about how Kobe Bryant's 81 point scoring game helped the television ratings for ABC AND ESPN, and how the market responed. I agree with what the article is saying about how this stand out performance made an impact on the market and for television networks. This is good for tv networks because everytime the lakers are playing the rating for the network that is airing the game will go up because viewers want to watch Kobe play to see if he will score another 81 points or more.
Marketers responded quickly to Kobe's 81 point game. Video's, shirts and jerseys were being sold because of the 81 point game and the demand for Kobe Bryant merchandise also has gone up after the game. This performance has opened door for Kobe to be featured on billboards and commercials.
Jan 30-Feb 5 2006
Volume 8 Issue 38 Page 6 High-Level suit rocks N.Y. Knicks $5.95
This article is about Isiah Thomas and a former employee for the New York Knicks. Anucha Sanders is has filed a lawsuit against Knicks president Isiah Thomas.
The way I feel about this article is that Isiah Thomas will clearly win this case. No matter what Sanders argument is, she will still be defeated just because Thomas is a former NBA star and is now the president of the Knicks. I feel she does have a reason to file a case but also she is in a lose lose situation, just because who she is going up against. I think that this case will be settled by Isiah Thomas giving money to Sanders in a way that she will just close the case and move on. Too many big name stars are getting away with severe cases. If a normal human was up against her, she would win for sure. Today it's all about what your name is. This article makes a hell of a story nationwide, but I'm sure everyone knows the outcome of this. If you don't than you should probably wake up by now. Now and former stars always escape penalty just because of who they are. Overall after reading this article I would say that Sanders has a very solid point about filing a case against Isiah Thomas. She is making enough money where she isn't trying to make up a case just to get money. I think the Knicks orgainzation should look into this deeply. If not another former athlete will escape. Good luck Sanders. What a great night. Chow Dr. Hsiao!
Volume 8 Issue 38 February 2
Canada joins neighbor Detroit in Festivities
This superbowl will in many ways the only international game in the championship's 40 year history. There will be festivities in both Detroit and Windsor, Canada, which is 15 minutes from Detroit. TWenty four years ago, when Detroit hosted the super bowl the official events were only on the US borders.
I think that this is a really good idea, that the US is opening up to let people come down from Canada to watch the Super Bowl. Budwieser in Canada did a promotion for the Super Bowl, putting the logo on packs of beer. Selling 350,000 cases of beer. Boosting revenue this year. Having Canada promoting the Super Bowl helps business in Canada make money selling stuff with the logo on it. Budweiser is also sponsoring a tailgate party on the Canadian side of the border to help kick the Super BOwl of in Windsor. One problem that Canadians run into trying to cross the order is getting stopped. The NFL has arranged for pre approved vehicles to cross without being stopped. I also think that that is a good part on the NFL, welcoming the people from Canada into the US to watch the Super Bowl and hopefully enjoy and want to come back in the future.
Volume 8 Issue 38 February 2
Story Built for New York tabloids by Alex Brandes
I’m writing in response to the article dealing with the sexual harassment suit against Isaiah Thomas. I think it is unfortunate for Isaiah to get mixed up in something like this for the simple fact that he always seemed to be a straight arrow. Just the same, I have no sympathy for him being plastered all over the news and media tabloids. I’ll admit that these athletes have genetic gifts that most of us aren’t blessed with, and that they work hard along the way to get to where they are, but that gives them no excuse to get away with crime. I get frustrated when players like Ray Lewis and Michael Irvin get pardoned for crimes that normal people would end up in jail for. Most of the time our society idolizes athletes so much that we let them get away with murder. I think it’s about time that athletes start being held accountable for what they do. When an athlete scores 81 points in a game, we give him all the media play in the world, and that’s fine. Yet, the athletes get caught with drugs or beat somebody up and they cry “foul” on the media for covering it so much. My thought is that if you are going to embrace the media in good times and as a part of your career then you have to be able to take the media coverage in the bad times as well. Furthermore, these athletes get paid to play a game that many of us would play for free! Why are they stupid that they waste those opportunities by getting themselves into trouble? At least Thomas did this after his career was over. He should ask Maurice Clarett how it feels to steal your way out of professional football. I think that if I were getting paid millions of dollars to PLAY a sport that I would at least owe it to myself to stay out of trouble. So I say, send the media in. Harass “poor” Isaiah Thomas. If he thinks it’s unfair to be harassed by the media, then maybe he should have thought about that before he did his own harassing.
Volume 8 issue 38 February 2, 2006
To NFL: Leave Playoffs, assistants' pay alone.
I agree with the article when they say leave the play offs alone. Any other set up would not be nearly as exciting. I mean yeah it's great when you have an awesome regular season but everyone loves an underdog and that's where the wildcard race comes it. I would venture to say that more people watch football durning the post season, than the regular season because of all the drama and suspence.
The article also talks about scalpers. Now if you don't want to see the game, that's fine but be reasonable. Scalping just comes down to greed. I agree that the NFL should more closly monitor the distribution of tickets. That way more deserving people can get into the game at a more affordable price. Or instead of scalping the player/coach should just be able to tell the league who the ticket should go to, makeing everyone happier and not nearly as broke.
Finally the article discusses the salary of assistant coaches. I think the league needs to stay out of that. If they are good at what they do and the team has the money to pay them. Then let them get what they deserve. The league commissionar said last week that he's worried about the amount of money teams are spending on assistant coaches, he worries that it will further the gap between the high revnue and lower revenue teams. Shouldn't the assistant coaches have the same oppertunities as the players they coach. Better first string players have a chance to make a lot more money that those that barely made the cut. As long as they produce for the team they keep getting good money. Shouldn't an assistant coach that is producing for the team get the same oppertunities.
Volume 8 Iss. 38 pg. 4
Samson Steers Marlins toward a new home
Briefly this article is about David Samson (team president) and Jeffrey Loria (Marlins owner). They are in a bind because the MLB team Marlins are falling with attempts to help all they see for a next step is to either move the team somewhere else in Florida or relocate in one of the eight different places.
I believe that this is a good move for owner and team president who have made many attempts to salvage the team such as pulling Bob DuPuy and chatted with lawmakers to use a state sales tax rebate to help fund the ballpark. With such failures to this business, relocation might not be the best idea due to the fact that Florida is such a baseball orientated state. The only place they seem to be looking in Florida is South Florida, maybe looking closer to the Orlando area would make differences in thought.
One thing that sticks out in my head about this paper is that even though Samson has gone through much criticism, after failing to produce a good business for pretty much all of the 13 years they have been there. The team had a some good seasons with a decrease of pay gradually falling more and more with one less then $20 million dollars for the up coming season. With that knowledge Samson, Loria, and management have actually been doing a sufficient job, the problem I see is location. Yes it is Florida and all be the fan base was just never constructed.
'Recruiting-news wars heating up'
Most college coaches used to pick up the morning newspaper in the 1970's and 80's to check up on their recruiting of their local areas. Times have changed. Today there are subscription websites all over the internet to get the latest news on just about any high school kid across the country. Recruting has come a long way because the technology has increased and now coaches are able to recruit anywhere across the country instead of mostly in the specific state they are located in.
As Wednesday's college football National Signing Day approaches, industry insiders wonder if all of the major parties in the online-fueled recruiting coverage field will survive. Two of the major recruiting websites I am familiar with are rivals.com and scout.com. Each of these sites have 1.7 and 2.2 million users respectively and also have signed deals with AOL Sports and Fox Sports to promote coverage on tv as well. I think this is a great because college football is one of my favortie sports to watch and I follow Penn State football very closely. I know since the season has ended I usually check both of these sites a couple times a week just to see what new recruits that may have committed to come and play for the Nittany Lions. I agree with the article when they say recruiting fans can't get enough, so they will read every source thats available to them. Experts believe that this subject has reached its peak and expect to have a fallout in the next few years, but I think if they start showing this coverage on certain channels they will continue to keep thier supportive fans. It will be interesting to see how this topic unfolds in the future.
Volume 8 Issue 38 Pg 8
'Recruiting-news wars heating up'
Most college coaches used to pick up the morning newspaper in the 1970's and 80's to check up on their recruiting of their local areas. Times have changed. Today there are subscription websites all over the internet to get the latest news on just about any high school kid across the country. Recruting has come a long way because the technology has increased and now coaches are able to recruit anywhere across the country instead of mostly in the specific state they are located in.
As Wednesday's college football National Signing Day approaches, industry insiders wonder if all of the major parties in the online-fueled recruiting coverage field will survive. Two of the major recruiting websites I am familiar with are rivals.com and scout.com. Each of these sites have 1.7 and 2.2 million users respectively and also have signed deals with AOL Sports and Fox Sports to promote coverage on tv as well. I think this is a great because college football is one of my favortie sports to watch and I follow Penn State football very closely. I know since the season has ended I usually check both of these sites a couple times a week just to see what new recruits that may have committed to come and play for the Nittany Lions. I agree with the article when they say recruiting fans can't get enough, so they will read every source thats available to them. Experts believe that this subject has reached its peak and expect to have a fallout in the next few years, but I think if they start showing this coverage on certain channels they will continue to keep thier supportive fans. It will be interesting to see how this topic unfolds in the future.
Volume 8 issue38 page 3
N.F.L owners approve $20M for Superdome
Owners had unanimous vote which is a big step in keeping the saints in New Orleans. The quiet negotiation had come to the decision that before any transaction was complete the state owned dome had to come up with the rest of the remaining money. The owner of the saint Tom Benson who during the season was rumored of saying he would like to move the team to San Antonio. Now Benson is saying he would like to rebuild the dome and keep the team in New Orleans.
The problem still remains that every day that passes with out a plan lower chances of the team playing in the dome next year. Hurricane Katrina not only destroyed large parts of the city of the city it also had torn up the dome pretty bad, estimates are up to 100M dollars. The Saints split home games between the Alamodome and L.S.U stadium, often with low attendance.
Questions were often brought up about Benson’s intentions in a time of need when he fired is chief executive fielkow, after publicly saying the saints should stay in New Orleans. No plan had been worked out as of yet. The league stadium funding pool is used by selling bonds which is paid back by visitor seating revenue. Some contribution may come from the N.F.L.P.A. and Doug Thornton the president of the company which operates superdome, but no phone calls were returned.
Jeremy Glass volume 8, issue 38 pg 6 High level suit rock New York Knicks.
This article is on how a former employee of the Knicks organazation says she was sexually harrassed by owner Isaih Thomas. I think that she only say stuff loke this because she knows that she can get an out of court settlement. Let alone the kind od points thatare percieved by outsiders. I really don't think that it will hurt the organazation too badly, but it did lower their attendance. This is just a minor setback but it will eventually be settled and attendance will be up again.
“Kobe comes through in clutch for TV”
Volume 8 Issue 38 Page 8
Aside from the truly diehard fans who watch for the love of their favorite team or simply of the sport, most people who watch basketball want to be entertained. Whether it comes in the form of an exciting, back-and-forth, down-to-the-wire game or a player dropping an unheard of amount of points, people want excitement and action. So when they tune in to a game and see Kobe Bryant lighting up the scoreboard. they stay tuned in. But lately, as it sits in the shadows of the NFL playoffs and other headline sports stories, the NBA‘s ratings, as recorded by ABC and ESPN, have gone down 11 percent.
So far this year, teams like the Detroit Pistons and the San Antonio Spurs, who are more team-orientated, are dominating the league in wins but people just aren’t as interested in watching them each night. Those two teams (who have both won championships in the past 2 years) don’t rely on key playmakers like Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, Carmelo Anthony, or Allen Iverson who may put up 40, 50, or 60 points on any given night. These types of Franchise players are the reason why TV stations televise their team’s games more than others. Even when Kobe was a part of the Laker team that won 3 championships in a row, the team he played for was much more sound team and had a guy buy the name of Shaquille O’neal, who was quite a dominant player to say the least, by his side. Kobe’s 81 point career night is a perfect example of what people want to see. Now, more people are going to turn on Laker games just to watch players like Kobe and see what they will pull off next.
"Kobe come through in clutch for TV" vol8 issue38 pg8
The article discussed how Kobe Bryant’s 81 point game, only second all time to Wilt Chamberlain’s 100 point game, turned networks ratings such as ABC and ESPN upward. Both networks were facing hard times with low rating. Both ESPN and ABC coverage ratings of the NBA has been down 11 percent from last season. After Kobe scored his career high points, the NBA finally got a weekend to play without having to compete with the NFL. Without the NFL, the week off before the superbowl, the NBA rating went up. The Maximum number of televised games per team is ten allowed by the league, ESPN covers seven of those. ABC also is allowed to carry up to five game appearances by one team. The Lakers have four of those five this season. Kobe followed his 81 point game with an average of almost 42 points per game over a 10 game run. Kobe’s jersey also went up in sales. With the All-Star game coming up, you can definitely except to hear and see more of Kobe.
I agree with what this article is saying that if a player does something over the top that the ratings of that network are going to increase. I myself have watched more basketball now and especially more Lakers games, hoping to see Kobe score an outrageous amount of points again. This impacts sports business because Kobe’s merchandise market has now increased. You can except to see more people at Lakers games now and more people buying Kobe and Lakers gear.
vol 8 issue 39 page 33
"spikes in new img logo"
The article i did was about the new IMG logo. The firm that IMG went with to do the new logo was FAME. They did about 40 interviews before they decided to hire them to make their new logo. The had there old logo for many years and there was nothing wrong with it but they just needed to update it. By updating there logo they made it very plain but to recognize it is there compant the M has 3 lines which identifies with their three major business areas which are sports, entertainment, and media divisions.
I said in the article that the logo was supposed to be unveiled at the super bowl and again at the olympus fashion week which IMG produces.
I feel this was a good idea on there part to update their logo and the letter M in the logo with the three lines relates to their company whereas the old one really had nohting to look at that you could relate to the company.
volume 8 issue 39
Despite slide, NBA all-stars remain Turner's Super Bowl
This article is about how the ratings for the NBA All-Star game has gone down. In 1996 the All-Star game was aired on NBC and 10.6 million households viewed it compared to the 5.3 million households that viewed it a year ago on TNT. The ratings dropped considerably low due to the switch to cable. Steve Solomon, president and ceo of SJS Sports, says, "having the game on cable isn't necessarily in the best marketing interest of the sports league." But even though the ratings are low this still is the biggest event happening on cable Television. That is why Jeff Gregor, senior vice president of merketing for Turner, goes on to say that the All-Star Game is to us what the Super Bowl is to the broadcast networks.
I agree with what Steve Solomon said because I think that if they moved the All-Star game back to the broadcasting networks then more households would be able to view it. This would casue the ratings to go up. Not all households have the luxury to have cable, so it automatically would decrease the ratings considerably.
The sports industry plays a big part in preparing the All-Star game to try to get as many people to view it as possible. One example of this is that every year they are trying entice people to watch the game with their pregame events such as the slam dunk contest, the three point shootout, and etc. Another way they are marketing this game is that in this article the writer goes on to state that the NBA decides what celebrities get the good seats, so your not only seeing sports stars but other celebrities as well. If ratings continue to go down I wouldn't be shocked to see the game air back on broadcasting televison.
Volume 8. Issue 39. Page 8
"PGA Tour uncorks specialty licensing effort"
The PGA tour is one of sport's recognizable brands' and they are stepping off the links and going in the homes of their fans but licensing wine on the courses. They are featuring eight varieties of wines that are priced between $15 and $60 a bottle. They started growing the grapes two years ago in the California vineyards.
In the past year nine thousand cases of wine have been sold and they brought in a $3.5 million sales. The Tour will get roughly 10 percent of the sales, according to the standard industry licensing arrangements. They think it seems like a drop in the cask for an organization that is making an extremely high revenue. But they th9ink the signature wine just may be the beginning of a bigger push into simoilar types of specialty licensing agreements.
They believe it is a growing industry and they are taking it more seriously. It can attract new drinkers and there are bars at every golf course in American and there are 17.800 golf courses. So this can be a successful thing for the PGA Tour.
I believe this is a good idea for the PGA Tour to have. I think selling wine will appeal to a majority of the fans and other people. Wine is something most people drink. If they are selling it at the PGA Tours I believe that they can get a lot of revenue off of it. It is an alcohol and I guess it can cause problems. But since it is through the PGA Tour, most of the fans are not disrespectful people and I would think would be able to handle the consumption of alcohol. I think its worth it because you will make some revenue off it of just because wine is something most people drink and the bottles that are being sold aren't that expensive.
Jacob White
Volume 8 Issue 39
February 6-February 12, 2006
Page 4
Nike first in line to pursue Bush
Reggie Bush is the potential first overall pick in this April’s NFL draft, and that has him being courted heavily by corporate giants. Bush reportedly flew on a corporate jet to Beaverton, Oregon a few weeks ago to begin discussions with Nike about an endorsement deal. However, he has not yet signed a deal and is set to meet with Reebok, Adidas and Under Armour in the coming weeks.
Endorsement deals for future high draft picks in the NFL do not compare with those of the NBA. Lebron James inked a seven year, 90 million dollar deal with Nike in 2003 before even being drafted. NFL deals average about 600,000 dollars per year. Bush may be the first to get a deal worth 1 million dollars per year. A Reebok spokesman estimates that Nike is the only company willing to give that much. He says his company won’t deal that much because the shoe deal is based highly on exposure, and the losing teams that have the high draft picks are rebuilding. Rebuilding teams do not get the TV time that successful teams get, and therefore Bush will not get a ton of exposure.
He has signed Joel Segal to negotiate his NFL contract, but has yet to sign a marketing agent. Bush will appear at the Fantasy Football Spectacular in New Jersey at the end of March. No undrafted NFL prospect has generated as much interest as Bush. The only comparison is Peyton Manning in 1998, but Bush’s autograph is expected to go for three to five times the amount than Manning’s and Bush is expected to sell twice the amount of autographs.
I think if anyone deserves a 1 million dollar per year endorsement deal, it is Reggie Bush. He will generate so much revenue for the league based on his athletic ability alone. People will want his jerseys, and people will tune in to see him play. If he has a shoe, up and coming football players will buy it and so will the public. Bush is electric and that’s what shoe companies love. He has the star power of Lebron James, but he won’t have the immediate impact that Lebron had due to the transition differences between college and professional football. But Bush will be a beast in the league.
volume 8 issue 39 page 4 "Nike first in line to pursue Bush"
This article talks about Reggie Bush from USC getting a deal with Nike appearel for his rookie season. For the last few years athletes have been treated real well with the money endorsements from different company's such as adidas, reebok and under armor gear.
Lebron James has the record with a seven year 90 million dollar deal with nike before he even played one game. NfL players only range around 600,000 dollars to be a representative for a company. I think it is like that because football is only 16 games a year unlike basketball which is i think around 82 games a year. more viewers get to see Lebron James;s new shoes more often than you would see for reggie bush.
The other thing is that Reggie Bush will most likely go number one in the draft which means that the team he gets drafted for had a terrible year last season, which means Bush will not get the television air time to actually represent nike. In the article it also says that Reggie may be the first to break the 1 millinon dollars a year mark for endorsements.
I personnally think it is outragous for young athletes to get paid that excessive amount of money before even doing anything in the NFL. Now i know he was the best player in college football last year, but what about an injury or a total bust in the NFL can have Nike losing a lot of money.
Nike first in line to pursue Bush..Volume 8 Issue 39 page 4.
Nike is talking about signing No. 1 draft pick Reggie Bush. Bush has not signed with any shoe or apparel deals yet. He still has to meet with Reebok, Adidas, and Under Armour. Nike did not respond to the press. Bush might be the first NFL draft to sign for millions of dollars. Labron was the highest in the NBA with a 90 million contract with Nike. Bush will appear at the Fantasy Football Spectacular, a memorablia event. Prices for Reggie memorablia is really high, comparing him to peyton manning in 1998, but Reggie is getting 3 to 5 times as much for his stuff.
I do think that Reggie Bush is a very talented football player. He deserves to be NO.1 draft pick. I dont see how NBA players are making that much more for contracts than NFL. Hopefully Reggie will be the first to sign a big contract with NIke, Reebok or Adidas. I just know that he will be having a lot of offers a long the road.
Keeper of the flame, Vol 8, iss, 39, Pg 1,21,22
This article is a very interesting piece because of whom it is about. My feelings of this article is that Jacqes Rogge the now present leader of the International Olympic Committee has done so much to revive the games from doping and scandal back to its rifle mantle of prestige and honor. In 2003 Rogge put together the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to govern over 80 major sports federations. This is a spectacular move after the 2002 scandals that have happened in the winter games in Salt Lake City. Salt Lake City is the most present scandal in our minds but for the past 40 years under old president Jaun Antonio Samaranch who was out in 2001. Rogge’s had started with capital reserves of 98 million dollars and now tipping the charts with an astounding 240 million dollars in capital reserves. This not only shows Rogge is good for the job but also that the scandals and blemishes are quickly wasting away.
Jacqes has been very busy facing the problem issues from restoring the credibility of the Olympics by limiting the size and growth of the Olympic movements his is open to new sports and aims to increase the appeal of the games younger participants. Also on the other spectrum of upper management he has included living in the athletes villages this returned the full focus of the games attention back to the athletes. It is remarkable to the extents of focus Rogge has thrown forth to capture the real meaning of the Olympics and its not just my word a marketer has to take in order to believe this. In the last couple of years he was able to claim back sponsors that said they were going to cut back their funds to now almost double folding their origainal agreement. Jon Hancock’s D’Alessandro is on sponsor who was cutting back and questioning there 50 million dollar sponsorship to now guaranteeing 80 to 100 million dollars.
"Nike first in line to pursue Bush"
Vol.8 issue 39- page 4
This article is about Nike signing Reggie Bush to a shoe contract. Reggie Bush is a running back from USC that will most likely go number one in the NFL Draft this year. He won the Heisman trophy this past season and has been compared to many greats. One name mentioned most is Gale Sayers. Nike is in the middle of talks with him right now about a contract, but sources are saying they may sign him for a deal up to or over 1 million dollars a year. If this happens it would make him the first football player to make that much. The current top players make in the range of $600,000 a year. Tom Shine, who is Reeboks senior vice president has not met with Bush yet, but made a good point in the article. He said that the value of the shoe isn’t based on the player’s talent alone, but with what team he ends up playing for, and he will end up on a rebuilding team’s roster. Rebuilding team means less airtime because they are not usually good.
It’s funny that just a couple years ago Nike signed Lebron James out of high school for a $90 million contract over 7 years and has never signed a football player to a million dollars a year. I guess basketball shoes sell a lot more and bring in more money, but those numbers are way different. I think it would be a good idea for Nike or some company to take a shot at Bush and offer him money because I think he is going to be very productive in the NFL. Even if he doesn’t succeed as a 3 down back, there are always special teams. Heck, he could probably be thrown in as a receiver in some sets and put up numbers. This kid is going to find a way to be great at the next level and I know I would jump on his back if I was a sponsor.
"Ad buyers: Olympic sales slow for NBC"
Vol 8 Issue 39 page-1
This article discusses how NBC is struggling to sell advertising space for the 2006 Olympic Games. Although NBC is insisting that everything is going smoothly, multiple advertising agencies would disagree. They believe that NBC is making it seem as though they are right on budget, when remaining advertising inventory shows much differently. Despite this apparent problem, NBC shows no sign lowering their asking price of $550,000 per thirty seconds. The company has set a target of 900 million over the course of the Winter Olympics and told the public a month ago that they had already earned 90 percent of that target.
I think that it is important for companies such as NBC to pay close attention to these patterns in sales for the Olympics. Prices for advertising space are slowly creeping upward and NBC and others are beginning to have problems selling their space. It seems that there is actually a limit that some companies who want to advertise won’t go over and those selling the space will begin to suffer. It sounds as though the television industry needs to resize their prices so they can gain back some of their advertisement customers.
"Ad buyers: Olympic sales slow for NBC"
Vol 8 Issue 39 page-1
This article discusses how NBC is struggling to sell advertising space for the 2006 Olympic Games. Although NBC is insisting that everything is going smoothly, multiple advertising agencies would disagree. They believe that NBC is making it seem as though they are right on budget, when remaining advertising inventory shows much differently. Despite this apparent problem, NBC shows no sign lowering their asking price of $550,000 per thirty seconds. The company has set a target of 900 million over the course of the Winter Olympics and told the public a month ago that they had already earned 90 percent of that target.
I think that it is important for companies such as NBC to pay close attention to these patterns in sales for the Olympics. Prices for advertising space are slowly creeping upward and NBC and others are beginning to have problems selling their space. It seems that there is actually a limit that some companies who want to advertise won’t go over and those selling the space will begin to suffer. It sounds as though the television industry needs to resize their prices so they can gain back some of their advertisement customers.
"Nike first in like to pursue Bush"
Vol. 8 Issue 39 Page 4
This article talke about how Nike Inc. is in discussion with the potential Number one draft pick Reggie Bush of the USC to signning a shoe contract. He may also have meetings with Reebok, Adidas and Under Armour. The article talks about how the top players in the NBA sign shoe deals of over millions of dollars a year, but top NFL players shoe deals range is $600,000 a year. I think the reason shoe deals are much higher for NBA players is due to how much they sell. People will go out and buy basketball shoes to wear on the court and off the court. And the people tht buy the shoes are male/female, kids/adults, athlets and non athletes. The only buyers that are going to buy a football shoe are football players, and are mostly male and these shoes can only be worn on the football field not off the field. But sources are speculating that Bush could be the first to break the one million a year mark for a shoe deal. I feel that he deserves a million dollar shoe contract because he is such an outstanding talented athlete and because he will most likely be drafted to a losing team i believe he will still stand out in the NFL and because of what he accomplished as a running back at USC people will tune in and watch the young man play ball.
Nike First in line to pursue Bush
Vol 8 Issue 39 pg. 4
This article talks about how Nike was first to talk to Reggie Bush who is running back at USC and no.1 NFL draft pick. They talked about singing a major endorsement deal at about 1million a year. Other brand names such as Reebok, under armor and Adidas are also trying to meet with him. If Bush were to sign with Nike he would make the most of any NFL player to sign a shoe contract by Nike NFL players with Nike contracts make a in the range of $600,000 a year, unlike Labron James who signed a 90million dollar contract right out of high school.
Tom Shine of Reebok says that it doesn’t matter the ability of the player but also which team the player signs with, because most likely he will go to a team with a losing record that is trying to rebuild. But is it better for Reggie to sign with Nike to make that much if he would be going to such a bad team, and what would it to for Nike in the long run even though he is such a great player? I think he will be a great money maker for any company he signs for no matter if he is on a horrible team or not I think it will be worth it for any company that wins him over.
"MLB expects less drama in next labor deal"
Vol. 8 Issue 39 pg. 3
As Bud Selig, commissioner of Major League Baseball, prepares for the next set of labor talks with the MLB Players Association, he hopes it will be easier than the negotioations for the 2002 labor agreement. This article discusses how the league will ask for less provisions than it did the last time the two sides met. 4 years ago the league was able to score major victories by increasing shared revenue and by adjusting the luxury tax, so it appears that this labor agreement will see fewer battles and changes. It would appears to me that MLB has, at least for now, overcome many of the issues that were damaging the league, and have made great strides towards mending its image with fans and media. It is odd that after the problems MLB has faced in the past, and with the NHL missing a season to a strike, that little attention seems to be spent talking about the trouble that the NFL is having reaching a labor deal. Hopefully all future labor negotiations, with all professional leagues, can be resolved without what was seen from the NHL and MLB in past years.
“Nike first in line to pursue Bush”
Volume 8 Issue 39 Page 4
With his track-like speed and amazing athletic ability, potential number one pick in the 2006 NFL Draft, Reggie Bush, will enter the league surrounded with an enormous amount of hype and expectation. Big name companies like Nike and Reebok are competing with one another to make a deal with the superstar. Nike is definitely the bigger powerhouse when it comes to marketing and advertising. They have been associated with numerous famous athletes in all different sports. In 2003 they signed a record breaking $90million deal with basketball star Lebron James, who entered in to the NBA right out of high school and signed the deal while he was only 18 years old. Companies are willing to dish out so much money because athletes like James are a walking billboard. When people see him wearing Nike shoes or apparel they are more willing to go out and buy, and the company’s reputation goes up because of the James’ association with them. In football however, there aren’t nearly as many games played in a year as the NBA and a teams popularity greatly affects the amount of televised games they have. So companies do not give out as much money to football players because people do not see them as much. Although he hasn’t yet met with other companies, Bush is expected to sign with Nike and make over a million dollars a year from them, a record breaking number.
"MLB expects less drama in next labor deal" Volume 8, issue 39 pg. 3
I’m writing in response to the article about Bud Selig and the upcoming baseball labor talks. The article discusses how Selig and the rest of baseball expect the labor talks to be a lot less dramatic than the last set. The reason that the talks are supposed to be more streamlined is because many people were satisfied with the last deal and parity in baseball is supposedly on the rise. I disagree with this article though. I think that baseball still needs a lot of help. It isn’t very fair in baseball when certain teams have ten times as much money as others to spend on players. With the Yankees salary coming in above 200 million and the Devil Rays team salary in the low 30 millions, how can this system be working? How can a team compete when their whole team gets paid less than another team’s left side of the infield? In my opinion, what baseball needs is instead a system similar to what the NFL has. The NFL has true parity. This parity exists because in the NFL they have complete revenue sharing as well as a salary cap. Therefore you can’t buy championships instead you have to be smarter with your money and bring in the right players. This causes teams to have to be a lot more careful with their money as they cannot simply spend more money than another team. The NFL has had almost every franchise make the playoffs in the last 10 years, compared to in baseball where some franchises haven’t even come close and others enter the season with no hope whatsoever. How can this be fair? This is why I hope that when the labor deal does get renegotiated that baseball gets it right and doesn’t settle for more years of suffering for the smaller revenue teams.
Volume 8, Issue 39, page 20
"Agents hedge their bets by delaying some deals until after the games"
The Olympics have always been filled with athletes who look like walking bilboards. Two snow boarders are taking a different approach to this years winter Olympic games in Torino. Seth Wescott and Lindsey Jacobellis are not signing with some sponsors until after the Olympics are over. Their agents feel that they will get a bigger offer if they win a metal, especially a gold one.
Wescott's agent, Peter Carlisle, was also 6 time gold metal swimmer Michael Phelps's agent. Carlisle took this same approach with Phelps and he is believed to have one of the biggest endorsement deals for an Olympic athlete.
Jocobellis's agent, Josh Schwartz, already have an agreement with VISA, which I'm sure many of you have seen the commercial with her in it. They did this to get her name out there and have people start to recognize who she is. She is also looking to do some beverage commercial ads and skin care/cosmetics because people view her as the all-american, wholesome, role model-type athlete.
Of course there is always the chance that an athelte may not a any metal at all. It is a risk that they are taking and if all goes as planned, will make out that much better in the end! I think this is a huge risk they are taking, but the are the male and female world champions going into the Olympics so their chances are looking good. And they have enough sponsors going into the Olympics that, in all reality, what is one more?!
Matt Valentine
Issue 8 Volume 39 Page 14
How many ways can you watch Duke-UNC
Rivalry week is in full swing and college teams around the nation are preparing to match up with their arch enemies. My favorite game to watch is always the St. Joes vs. Villanova game that is held at the Palestra, which is a neutral site for both teams since it is on the University of Pennsylvania’s campus. The mood is always electric when these two city rivals face off. Another game that is always anticipated this time of year is the Duke vs. UNC game. As far as I am concerned, this is arguably the biggest rivalry in sports right behind when the Yankees play the Red Sox. ESPN looks to capitalize off this rivalry by airing the game on at least 6 different network platforms. An initiative called “full circle” will put major events like this one on every possible outlet that ESPN rights deals will allow. The game will be aired from many different angles and perspectives, such as on above the rim cameras places on each side of the court. Earlier last semester I wrote an article that dealt with a match up between Virginia Tech and Miami where the entire game was broadcasted over the recently developed SkyCam only on ESPNU. ESPN now sees an opportunity to utilize this innovative camera angle to broadcast not only football games but basketball games as well. I think that this is a great step for the broadcasting industry in general because it offers the fan at home a way to watch the game in a way that they had never before been able to.
Volume 8, Issue 39, pg1
"Ad buyers: Olympic sales slow for NBC"
This article discusses ad space on NBC. Even up to a week before the opening ceremonies there is still ad space on NBC. A thirty second add will cost a company $550,000 per unit. Reports say that they only have 90% of their sales goal. NBC insists that they are right on track and that there are no problems, but some of their partners would say otherwise. Personally I think that they are struggling. Even though they have yet to meet their goal they still refuse to budge on their prices which I think are hurting them. I think that if they were willing to take it down some. They would be overflowing with offers. Instead it seams that they would rather lose the remaining funds rather than compromise.
Studies also show that ratings are down and they are not looking good for these games because many key events won’t be shown live. Plus they are not going to be held in the US. I think that they need to give in and lower the amount that they are asking for because on paper they aren’t looking as good as they claim. If that is the case then how do you justify asking so for so much money when investors don’t really know if the money they put down will be worth it. Also at what point to you say ok this is out of hand. For some companies this is it. They are not willing to put that much money into thirty seconds. I think advertising companies need to adjust their prices and bring back some old customers that just can’t pay that much.
Volume 8, Issue 39, Pg1
"TV plan adds labor friction"
This article is about the NFL placing a new late-season Thursday-Saturday night TV plan. But, the TV plan added friction between the league and the union. The collective-bargaining agreement ends next year, and the two sides have been trying to reach an agreement. With the NFL Network deal, comes confusion to the collective bargaining talks. The union states that the $300 million must go to the poll of revenue that is shared by with the players.
I feel this new plan will bring a lot more money to the game and a lot less conflict between the players and the league. With the money that it brings in, no player will complain about the salary they are making. I feel everyone should be happy after this deal is made. They can put the past behind them about the collective-bargaining agreements, and move on with a lot of money in their pockets.
Matthew Jones
February 6 -12, 2006
Volume 8 Issue 39
PGA Tour uncorks specialty licensing effort
California based wine company; Bermuda Triangle Ventures has created 8 different wines specifically made for the PGA. Only being sold at PGA venues, events, and specific country clubs, the wine will available through those means. Already going into a difficult market, other PGA players have their own wine lines and BTV will be competition with them.
For instance Greg Norman estates sell 500,000 cases per year topping the PGA player wine group. Jim Facciuto, president of BTV, believes his wine will be found in all of the PGA recognized courses. The wine drinking industry is growing and focusing on the specific group of people whom belong to the clubs will make the wine sales increase.
As of right now, projected sales for the BTV first years sales $3.5 million, $15 million for the next five years and recent sales have been through the roof. With sales close to these projections the BTV will prosper in the future. A specific wine for specific venues, which attracts much more than PGA players will know this wine and will drink the PGA Tour wine will generate a decent income.
“How many ways can you watch Duke-UNC?”
This article deals with the television coverage on the Duke-UNC game on March 4th. It says at least six different ESPN networks and platforms will have live coverage of the game. Most people, like me, will view the game on the normal ESPN channel, with some people having the luxury of high definition. However, ESPN2 will show the game from two above-the-rim cameras and ESPNU will show a split screen with the one side from the stands of the “Cameron Crazies”. All other ESPN programs will display some recognition of the game as well.
I think having all of these telecasts of the game is an excellent idea. Statistics show that Duke consistently brings in the best ratings every year. To some people this is the best rivalry in all of sports and ESPN is doing everything they can to get people to watch. Even if you can’t watch the game, ESPN will have numerous other ways to keep you updated, like ESPN Mobile and ESPN.com. After the electrifying game the Duke and UNC brought us earlier this week, I’m sure ESPN will have an easy time reaching their goals for this game.
Feb 6-12 2006 Volume 8 Issue 39
"Behind the scenes on signing day"
This article talks about how ESPNU prepared for the first day of high school football players to sign with their respective college. ESPNU was going to show 6 hours of coverage of the high school football players signing. This took a lot of preparation and time. They scheduled many interviews with some of the top prospects to boost up the show. Some people would argue that high schooler's shouldn't miss a day of school for this or that they shouldn't televise signing day at all. I disagree. I think these kids should get one day and be honored for their acheivements. One day is not going to hurt their school work or anything like that. Many of these kids want to announce their choice on a national broadcast, especially ESPN. This is also a great way for ESPNU to market their channel. Many fans want to know where the high school talent is headed. Everyone wants to know if the top prospects are going to there favorite college teams. One person talks about how a recruit shouldn't be glorified in such a team sport. Obvisouly they are team oriented or they wouldn't have made it this far. They are bragging about what they did as a senior in high school or anything like that, they simple annoucing where they intend to play next year. I feel ESPNU should cover this every year and have several high schooler's announcing their college choice on a national broadcast. The kids love it.
"ESPN pulls fee for ‘SportsCenter’ downloads" by Julie Graham Volume 8, issue 39, page 6
ESPN had put their thirty second commercials on Apple Itunes for two dollars each. Hours after they first became available fans complained of the high fee for each short commercial, and gave them poor ratings. Three days later the price was changed. ESPN and Apple never had declared a price for the commercials. Commercials are free, while other features such as condensed bowl games cost money. Since a few months ago when sports content was first put on the internet it has become increasingly more popular and will most likely continue to grow in content.
Nyeemah Shubert
Volume 8,issue39,page9
"NBA Backs away from negotiations on Chinese Rights"
I choose this article because it describes how greed can destroy your future being.
This article responds on how the NBA(National Basketball Association) back away from the chance to win the "Marketing rights to china's men's national basketball team". They proceeded to back down because after the CBAs(Chinese Basketball Association)last demand, which cost the value of the deal to increase, made the NBA walk out of the ready to be made agreement.
In china the CBA controls their own national teams along with 14 chinese basketball leagues.
The demand was the chinese basketball league wanted the NBA to bring in two major sponsor companies, which the NBA felt had nothing to do with the original deal, a source replied.
The sponsors that were being requested was not available.
With this being said, the deal the CBA could have created far more exposure in china leading up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The contract would have given them opportunies to services such as training and coaching. The true value of the contract was believed to be up to $10 Million.This would have also given them the rights to both male and female national teams.
Now Switerland-based Infront has a long-term deal to market the CBL but they do not have the rights to chinese national teams.But the company was offering a $15 million cash contract for three years which includes some services.
This Bidding process began in last fall.
With all this being said now china may have to settle for anything before the "what's left that's good get going".
'Behind the scenes on signing day'
Volume 8 Issue 39
The article mostly concerned how the recently introduced ESPNU channel was planning hours of coverage of national signing day for high school athletes to announce where they would be playing football next season. This has become a major deal the last few seasons and continues to grow with popularity. The plan was to retrieve numerous interviews with some of the top recruits to draw more attention and provide top coverage of the event. Of course there will always be critics about how high school kids should not be televised in such a fashion, but I think they deserve this recognition for their achievements and I personally enjoy following the recruiting process and like to know who will be playing for my favorite team next year. It is always more interesting when you follow a player from high school and then get to seem him in college because you know where he came from and everything about him before he gets there. More importantly to ESPNU is the opportunity to market their channle and show viewers what they are all about. I agree totally with this decision because this process of recruiting is growing in popularity every year and some say it has reached its peak, but I disagree because it will continue to grab the attention of new viewers every year. I think ESPNU should continue to cover this subject because again there are many college football fans out there that want to know who is coming into town for next season. Ignore the critics and keep covering the recruting process and signing day is what I say.
Jeremy Glass "Nike first in line to pusue Bush" vol 8 issue 39 pg 4
This article is about USC's running back, Reggie Bush, and how he might be the first football star to have a million dollar shoe deal with a shoe company. He also has interviews lined up with Reebok, Adidas and Under Armor.
I believe That Nike, if they sign the deal with Bush, will have signed a deal that will not generate much revenue. Just like the Reeboks senior vice president said, if Bush goes to a bad team because they get the first picks, then Bush won't even be on T.V that much. His team will not be that strong and will get no air time. So people who like the shoes Bush is trying to sell, well they won't even get a chance to see him playin them.
Shoes just aren't the most looked at thing on a football player. To me, I really never ever look at a football players shoes. The article does show proof of this also. They said about Lebron James having a deal of 6 years for 90 million dollars with Nike. This just goes to show the difference of appearence that basketball players have from football players.
All in all, I believe that Nike should wait a season to see how Bush and his team do to spend that much money on someone who isn't even drafter to the NFL already.
"Nike first in line to pursue Bush" vol.8 iss.39 pg.4
This article talks about Reggie Bush and his endorsement deals. Nike, Adidas, Reebok and Under Armour, are just some of shoe and appeal companies that are looking at Bush to be their front man. No NFL player has ever received more than 1 million dollars per shoe deal. Many people believe that Bush might break that barrier and be the first NFL player to get a shoe deal over a million dollars. The latest high profiled shoe deal by Nike was given to LeBron James before he entered the NBA draft. James holds the record by receiving a seven-year, $90 million deal with Nike. The one thing that is not in Bush’s favor is that he is more than likely going to be a franchise player on a losing record team. That means that his games won’t be televised as much, making marketing for Bush and endorsements somewhat worthless. But besides that issue, Bush will still get the best of endorsement deals out there. Bush is already signed some memorabilia things and guest appearance deals. Right now Bush is the hottest NFL draft pick out there. I believe that Bush will get the best deal out there with the best company. Right now I would say that Nike is going to pick him up because of his high-speed energy that he brings to the game. I believe that Bush will be the number one pick in NFL draft, making him likely to receive all best endorsement deals. I think he can break the record for an NFL player with a shoe deal. He’ll be the first to top $1 million a year. This all relates back to sports marketing because one of these major shoe companies and appeal companies are going to land a deal with this superstar and he’ll be the next hot marketing person since LeBron.
“Nike first in line to pursue Bush”
Volume 8 Issue 39 page 4
This is an article that happens two times a year. Who will get the big endorsement deal? Except this year Nike is trying to out bid every one. In the past years big shoe deal have been in the area of 600,000 this year Nike is raising the bar offering Reggie Bush 1 million dollars. Although Reggie has not signed the papers yet, and may still meet with adidas, reebook, and under armour to see their offers. An interesting statement made by Senior vice president Tom Shine was that if Nike does sign him for 1 million dollars his complements go out to Reggie and Nike, but also the value of the shoe is based not only on talent of the player but on the team he plays for as well. This means if Bush goes first in the draft, he will likely be on a team that is not very good or in the process of rebuilding. I have to disagree with that cause in retrospect any team he ends up with Reggie will still be very marketable based on his athletic skill alone plus when was the last time you seen a running back break a 60 yard run and you looked to see what kind of spikes he was wearing.
"Nike First in Line to Pursue Bush"
Volume 8 issue 39 page 4
This article is stating how Nike wants to indorse Reggie Bush and make him his own shoes. People are stating that they think that he will break the one million dollar mark by signing this offer. No other NFL player has ever made over $600,000. They are comparing his memorabilia sales to what he should get for this indorsement. His memorbilia sales is are three to five times what Walter Peytons were in 1998. In my opinion, Reggie will not break the one million dollar mark however he will come close . My guess is it will be around $800,000 to $900,000. The only reason that he would break the one million dollar mark is because Reggie's agent will plead for it. They gave Lebron Jones ninety-nine million dollars for seven years but he plays a lot more games and all ages of people play football making them want the shoes. Only younger males play football so there would be less consumers in my opinion. Who knows though they gave Lebron that deal before he started he playing in the NBA so maybe they'll take another risk on Reggie before he starts his career. Lebron is already proving himself in the Pro's so they just might make the big pay out.
Vol. 8 Iss. 40 page. 3
This article talks about the PGA and how the foreign exchange has signed with them. Since there are 75 international members who are from 24 countries I feel this change will be liked by many.
If someone wants their winnings to be in Euros, pesos, or pounds this firm can now do this for them. The article also states that by converting their winnings to how they want it, it will be easier for them to donate a percentage of their money to different charities. Custom House will begin working the 2006 world golf championship and the american express championship in hertfordshire, england.
I feel this change should have been done along time ago beacause having their money converted for them will allow the players less time to figure that out and more time to play golf and donate their winnings.
Volume 8, Issue 40, page 14
"NoSurrender from North Dakota in NCAA mascot Controversy"
This article talks about the differences in opinion for the nicknames of NCAA schools. Four years ago there was a controversy about Native Americans are being represented by mascots. Teams such as Florida State Seminols, Central Michigan Chippewas and the Utah Utes just to name a few.
North Dakota is having problems understanding why these three teams are not getting in trouble for their nicknames but their university is getting asked to switch their nickname because it is the "Fighting Sioux". UND had to eliminate their haockey tournament because it had to many signs and paintings of the fighting sioux. UND has made a 16 page document submitted to the NCAA Excecutive Committee on why they should have to change but the few that are left doesn't.
I think that the rule should be for everyone with the nicknames. Personnally i do not see anythiung wrong with the mascots name. It isn't like they are being discriminated, they are really getting compliments. But if the Native Americans do not want their name to be on fotball shirts or posters then they should be allowed to give their opinion and they should stop doing it as a group in the NCAA. I dont think it's fair that some schools get to keep their name and some have to change it, the rule should be the same for all NCAA colleges. Either get rid of the names all together or keep all the nicknames.
Also, in this article it says that UND takes great pride in their mascot. That right there should be enough eveidence to keep the mascots name, but if the Native Americans have that big of a problem with it then the NCAA should change all the nicknames that are being discriminated
After big year on the field, Alexander ready for record paycheck
Volume 8, issue 40, page 14
The MVP of the National football League Shaun Alexander is the biggest free agent on the market and is waiting to be the highest paid running back in the NFL. Last season he was still under his rookie contract since 2000 when he was drafted #19. when that ran out in 2004 he was resigned for one year at the franchise pay raise on the condition that they would not franchise him in 2006 season. Now this year is do or die for the Seattle Seahawks they can either sign him for the price he wants or let him test the free agent market on March 3.
This is a contract that is past due for Alexander especially after finishing second in rushing last year. Heligman who is one of Shaun’s agents had been with the NFL’s player association since 2002, said they are confident that a contract will be made if not by the Seahawks by another team. Shaun will look at the potentials of other teams and see which as the best chance of getting back to the Super Bowl; although his heart is in Seattle as well as him saying he would rather stay with the Seahawks. This could be Shaun’s one and only chance at free agency while in his prime, he has a chance to care of him and his family’s future. This is a very serious decision to make, but the good news is that Shaun and the Seahawks could reach a deal before the March 3 dead line. They have been in negotiation talk since the middle of the season.
"Teams, athletes help Flex-Power muscle up" Volume 8 Issue 38 page 9
This article is about a smaller company called Flex-Power and how they are marketing their product. Flex-Power is a joint relief cream like Ben Gay and Icy Hot. The company only has 7 full time employees and 15 part time employees, but has become very popular amongst some big names in sports. Some of the players that are lined up to promote the product are Jason Kidd, Manu Ginobli, Stephon Marbury, Hank Aaron, and Jeff Garcia. The best part about their marketing strategy isn’t who they have to promote it, but how much they have spent on the athletes for their participation and testimonials, zero dollars. Flex-Power has not spent a penny on the athletes. Instead the athletes enjoy using the product and want to become investors in the product.
In my mind, these guys are geniuses. For the amount of money they have made with such a small work force is amazing., The best part is that they found famous spokespeople to participate for free in the marketing strategy. At the end of the article the owner said that he would like to become the next PowerBar and stated “first there was no food in sporting goods stores and gyms and now everyone has it.” I think he hit it right on the head with that statement because working out and sports and nutrition has grown so much in recent years. I think this product could become huge because of the expanded number of individuals that are working out, especially older adults. Older adults would probably love to use a product that worked better than the leading creams right now. This could easily become the next PowerBar if they market it right.
"Player appearances set record" volume 8 issue 40 page 6
This article is about how there was an unexpected turn out of player appearances at Players Inc, which is the marketing side of the NFL's player association. The executives at Players Inc. were no where expecting the numbers that they got during the superbowl of players who showed up becuase of the location and climate in Detroit. However this year they broke there old record of 350 players to this year being 360 player appearances. The executives thought that since they were no outdoor activities such as golf and other outings that it would make the numbers decline. That was not the case! So this year there were 360 appearances and of those 360 appearances, 167 of them were NFL players and draft prospects. By having more players appear this generated 2.3 million dollars in fees for those players. Skull, vice president of player marketing for Players Inc. goes on to say "from the sponsors' standpoint the interest was strong, and they activated more than ever before." In these appearances Players INC booked them for more than 30 companies such as Visa, Pepsi, Motorola, FedEx, Sprint, and so on.
Personally, I would have aggreed with Skull that I would have expected the numbers to decrease for many reasons. One being the location which is in the heart of Detroit and not the friendliest city to go to. Secondly, the weather is cold and not pleasant. Now having thought about why these players did show up I have thought about a reason why they might have.One reason being is that I feel that players would want to come and increase their revenue and to collect money by showing their faces on different advertisement, becuase the more time they show up to events, then that is more money that goes into their pockets. If you are a football fan and you see Peyton Manning drink a Pepsi, will you? Obviously that will help create revenue for Pepsi and Peyton. Ultimately, sports stars do not just get paid alot of money to be in games, but to also show up at events such as this one and to do advertisements.
Foreign exchange firm signs on with the PGA Tour
Volume 8, Issue 40, Page 3
In this article, the PGA is being able for the golfers to have their winnings converted into any currency they chose. I think this is good because the golfers are from all over the world, and that way the earning are not just in American or whatever. Now instead of changing the currency sometime down the road and going through the hassle, they can exchange the money right away.
The company that is doing this with the PGA Tour is Custom House Global Foreign Exchange. The company does not just want to stop at the PGA Tour but to expand this idea to the ATP, LPGA and the WTA. These federations all have players from around the world so it just makes sense to go along with it.
Vol. 8, Iss. 40, pg 7
XM doesn’t plan to be tuned out of NASCAR
Satellite radio is here and it is here to stay, it is exactly what Americans love diversity right now. You can tune into the weather driving to work for five minutes then see what is going on in the Howard Stern world and now tune into NASCAR if you own a XM satellite radio. There competitors Sirius has already started this giving costumers coverage and in-car audio in 2007 with five-year rights worth $107.5 million. Covering motorsports is now an important priority for vice president of XM Eric Logan. XM needs to do something to hit up NASCAR fans once they jump to Sirius yet they don’t have a exact plan yet, they talk about a looking for a new voice (host) that would bring in the fans such as what they are testing in by using a current driver Jimmie Johnson as a host. What I believe they must to in the upcoming years is to maximize what they have to a 24 hour channel like what they have on the NFL or Comedy stations. They need to get to all diversities of listeners and NASCAR is such a booming industry right now they must make a fast approach on it now or they will lose business to a lot of consumers. As of now they have announced deals with big names such as Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson, but what they have to do is get into the larger name which is the entire NASCAR company so they have the ability to stay on the air 24/7.
vol. 8 issue 40 pg 6
Player Appearance Set Record
Marketing executives were planning on the turn out for the number of retired and current pro athletes to be at the superbowl were higher than they expected. It set the new record of more than 360 appearances and 167 NFL players and draft prospects. The article basically wonders why this many athletes made it to the superbowl this year and not as many in the years past. I think that the number was so high was because of the whole story line behind the superbowl with jerome bettis a very well liked and respected player going back to his hometown to play. I think another reason is the Pittsburgh Steelers seem to be a very well liked team in the area and Detroit wasn't to far so i'm sure that there were alot of old steelers there. Another reason I believe relates to the article we discussed a couple weeks ago in class its superbowl forty and it was marketed more than any other championship game ever. I'm sure that a lot of these athletes that attended were seaking some media coverage to and trying to earn some more money and with this being promoted so well I'm sure that was a lot of free stuff and money for these pro athletes. It also wasn't a very warm weekend on the east coast that weekend so maybe some people just changed their plans and decided to go enjoy a nice game of football.
Player appearances set record. Vol. 8 Issue 40 pg. 6
This article talks about how the Players Inc. set a record for player appearances during the super bowl. They booked more than 360 appearances for 167 NFL players and NFL draft prospects. The old record was 350 appearances for about 120 to 145 players. I heard alot of people talking about how Detroit was a terrible place to hold a Super Bowl because of the cold weather and the city itself. This article makes it seem like Detriot was a good place to hold the super bowl. Some of the companies that where involved where Visa, Pepsi, Motorola, FedEx, Sprint, Coors, Canon, and Southweast Airlines. Some of the players that made appearances where Tom Brady, both of the Mannings, Barry Sanders, Steve Smith, Bart Starr. Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush both made an apperance during the Super Bowl. This will help both of them when it comes to marketing themselfs for the future. The reason that more players came out this year for to make an appearance is because the more they are seen in public the more money they stand to make later, weather it is with contracts or other companies coming to them to see if they will make a commerical for them.
"Player apprearances set record"
vol. 8, issue 40, pg. 6
This article was about how the executives at Players, Inc. were very pleased with the outcome of this years number of player appearances in Dietroit for Super Bowl week. They set a new record of 360 people, breaking the old record of 350. The generated $2.3 million in fees compared the previous of only $1 million. They were surprised of this outcome because of the cold weather in Detroit. Over 30 sponsors jumped on the opportunity to send their representatives to Detroit. Some NFL draft prospects, current and retired NFL players attended included Reggie Bush, Matt Leinart, Tom Brady, Peyton and Eli Manning, Steve Young, and of course Ben Roethlisberger and Jerome Bettis. I think this was a great idea to generate revenue and to get the sponsors names out to the public. The fact that some of the current and retired Steelers players were brought in that week also brought that many more Steelers fans to Detroit.
Reebok rolling ads with Australian Open champ.. volume 8, issue 40, page 5
Amelie Mauresmo is the latest featured athlete in Reebok's global ad campaign. Reebok signed Mauresmo last year, she was skilled but very unconsistent as a player, however she reached her grand slam final before her breakthrough last month. She is very popular in France, where Reebok ran congratulatory ads after her victory. The ad will hopefully introduce Amelie to a wider audience, like the United States. Mauresmo is best known for being stage frieght before mathces and coming out of the closet in 1999 before the Australian Open. Becoming well known in the U.S is going to take more than just one grand slam, she is going to have to start winning. Her only other endorsements are Dunlop and Gaz de France.
I personally dont even know who she is. I dont think that this was smart on Reebok's half. She is not even that famous in the United States. Hopefully for Reebok she becomes bigger and starts winning. Not only being a one time thing. She is known to get stage fright before matches , who knows if she is even going to keep winning. I dont think that Reebok should of went with Amelie, I dont think that Reebok made a good decision, they didnt chose wisely.
"Latinos assuming broad role in diversity discussion" Volume 8. Issue 40. Page 25.
Race is still an issue that is out on the tables in pro sports. It used to be just between black and white. Now they are are including the Latinos in on the mix because they are becoming a big part of the MLB and the NFL.
Omar Minaya is the general manager of the New York Mets, and he was the first general manager that was Latino in Major League Baseball. The MLB and the NFL are usually slow to hire people of color as general managers and head coaches because of the history of the MLB. SInce Minaya has been general manager he has taken control of the Mets and has been able to trade or sign free with agents with extraordinary talent propelling the Mets from a noncontener into an expected contender in 2006. Because of Minaya's success in getting talent on the Mets team, people are starting a debate saying he is trying to build a Latino team. Many of the players he was signing did happen to be Latino but they also seemed to be the best players. Now, the players that are entering the league are Latino players but they are among the best players. There is a 50% chance that if you sign a good player that they will be Latino.
This article isn't really anything to debate on. I don't see the problem with Latinos being a bigger part of the Pro's. If they are the better players then why shouldn't they picked to play. It shouldn't matter what their heritage is and why they should be on a team. If one team is all Latino's and they are the best team then that's the other teams fault for not getting Latino's to play on their team! I don't think race should be an issue. If you have skill and can play the game and play it well, then who cares what background you are.
"No surrender from North Dakota in NCAA mascot controversy" vol. 8 issue 40 pg. 14
This article is about the University of North Dakota fighting to keep their nickname. This issue has been a very interesting one in the NCAA because of the stipulation that teams using American Indian nicknames would be excluded for participating in post-season events. I find the issue very confusing because many of the school names are not slanderous to Native Americans. To me there should be little issue if a school wants to use the name of an indian tribe. Although Florida States actual mascot, a man dressed as an indian riding a horse, can be seen as offensive, that doesn't mean the the name "Seminoles" is offensive. I also have a hard time understanding why some teams should be allowed to keep their nicknames, yet others are not. It seems to me that this should not be an issue unless a group of native americans comes and requests a University change its name.
As a student at IUP, a school that is resisting changing its nickname, i find this issue to be almost comical. In the entire time I have been enrolled here I have never seen the IUP portray a negative image towards native americans, nor have I seen the school do anything that i would deem offensive. It seems to me that the NCAA has more important issues to deal with than non-offensive nicknames.
“No surrender from North Dakota in NCAA mascot controversy” by Julie Graham
Vol. 8 issue 40 pg 14
This article is about the University of North Dakota’s right to keep the name, the Fighting Sioux. North Dakota feels that it’s 17th-century Sioux Warrior profile; by an American-Indian artist is not an insult to the Sioux tribes. There is no support of the “Fighting Sioux” by any of the local tribes, although the three tribes have good relations with the university and leaders take pride in the logo.
After a four year review by the NCAA a policy was put in place to eliminate American Indian names in college athletics. Eight-teen universities in total were placed on the list of “hostile and abusive” nicknames. So far three have successfully appealed the policy while two modified their names. Of the three schools that are now exempt from the NCAA’s list all received blessings to use the tribal name (The Florida State Seminoles, the Utah Utes, and the Central Michigan Chippewas.) The remaining 13 are resisting, but a ruling is expected in April.
The NCAA cannot force the removal of a name from the school or jerseys but they can however, not allow schools to play in post season tournaments and disallow them holding a championship. This ban was going to effect the Fighting Sioux’s hosing of a Division I hockey tournament in March, so the NCAA decided to life the ban until the appeal is decided in April.
UND’s arguments include that the NCAA is abusing its authority, the executive committee is relying on hearsay, that some nicknames and logos honor not stereotype American Indians, and that the NCAA’s policy is political correctness gone overboard. Also the fact that the Seminoles lead fans in tomahawk chops by a white man, dressed as an Indian on a horse is more of a negative depiction, than their name. UND also feels depictions of pioneers in relation to current Caucasians are as equivalent as their logo is to the present look of American Indians.
Nyeemah Shubert
"Players appearances set record" Volume8,issue40,page6
I choose this article because I really felt that the people in Detroit should have known for one its the SUPERBOWL,and for two, every, if not most males love the game. An if they don't like football, they at least know someone who does.
This article explains how Detroits players marketing team were expecting less than usual player appearces, due to Detroits cold weather. They actually generated over $2.3million in fees during superbowl week.By booking 167 NFL players and prospect drafts alone, said vice president of player marketing for Player Inc., Howard Skall. Their old record during a superbowl week was $1million in fees involving 120-145 player appearances. They were morely worried about the outdoor activities being cancelled because of the weather. They even had comments from the sponsors stand points remarking, that the interest was strong, and they activated more then ever before.Sponsors like Fedex, Coors, Southwestern Airline, (along with many other sponsors). They even had appearances by retired NFL athletes like Barry Sanders,Bert Starr, along with some current NFL players like Eli Manning( NY Gaints quarter back) and Peyton Manning(Indiana Colts quarter back).They even had special guess appearances by NFL draft prospects Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush.
All I can say is you never know what can happen, just always be prepare for the worst
Volume 8, Issue 40, Page 14
I’m writing in response to the article entitled “No Surrender from North Dakota in NCAA Mascot Controversy.” In this article the author talks about how North Dakota is resisting changing its mascot even though the NCAA has ruled that all schools with Native American reference names must do so. Some schools have already agreed to change, while some have won appeals to keep their names, like Florida State. Interestingly, one school still fighting just like North Dakota is IUP. I find this article very interesting. For one, I think it is stupid to force these schools to change their mascots because it is not politically correct. In my opinion, schools with Native American logos or mascots are an honor to those nationalities. I understand I am not a “Fighting Sioux” which is North Dakota’s mascot, but I think if I were, that I would be proud of my heritage and that I had a local college using my nickname. In addition, how is a Native American reference any different from a mascot like the Fighting Irish? I don’t here about any Irish people getting unhappy over this mascot. Is it because the NCAA doesn’t dare challenge Notre Dame’s tradition? Is that why Florida State was able to win its appeal, because it has more clout than North Dakota or IUP? All in all, I think this idea of changing Native American mascots to something different is a big crock. There are so many other problems with college universities why make a big deal out of something that in my opinion is just so trivial. I say scalp the NCAA!
'Foreign exchange firm signs on with the PGA Tour'
Volume 8 Issue 40 Page 3
This article discussed how golfers in the PGA tour can now recieve their winnings in a currency they desire. I think this is a great idea because if you turn on any golf event there are players from all over the world. Anymore there are just as many players from out of the U.S. than in. This process is now convenient for the players because instead of the stress of changing the american dollars to the desired currency this step can be skipped and there is much less controversy to deal with. The company working with the PGA Tour is Custom House Global Foreign Exchange. The company does not intend to only work with the PGA Tour, but expand their company to the ATP, LPGA and the WTA. I think this will be a success because these associations are minority filled and a lot of the players will take advantage of such a great opportunity. This company has the right idea and should expand very fast. Should be interesting to see if they expand into the previous associations.
"No surrender from North Dakota in NCAA mascot controversy" Vol.8, Issue 40, Page 14
this article talks about North Dakota and how it was placed on the list of 18 institutions using hostile or abusive nicknames. in august the NCAA instituted a policy intended to eliminate american indian nicknames and mascots it deemed inappropriate. three schools that successfully appealed this were Central Michigan, Utah and Florida State. Midwestern State in Texas and Carthage in Wisconsin agreed to modify their nicknames and were approved by the NCAA therefore were removed from the list. three of the thirteen remaining institutions are still resisting, they are Bradley, Indiana University of Pennsylvania and the University of North Dakota. the NCAA doesn't have the power to strip nicknames from jerseys but it does have the power to deny schools from playing in postseason tournaments and hosting NCAA championships. this being said the NCAA threatened North Dakota's plans to host a DI hockey regional in March, but the NCAA agreed to lift the ban after the appeal is decided in April. the three schools that were removed from the list wer able to document supoort for teir nicknme from a namesake tribe, they had the tribes blessing to use their tribal names.
Gary Mader
“It’s an activation celebration at NBA’s All-Star Weekend”
Volume 8 Issue 40 Page 4
With the NBA All-Star break just around the corner, big name companies are jumping on every chance to offer their sponsorship. All-star weekend is a huge event that appeals to people of all ages. Millions will tune in to watch the rookie vs. sophmore game, the dunk and skills competition, and ultimately the All-Star game. People who will be attending the event in Houston are able to participate in many events and activities, all of which will be sponsored by a certain company. It is definitely a perfect chance for a company to get its name out there and seen. Big name companies like Toyota, Sprite, Nike and Reebok want their names to be associated with such a popular event like All-Star weekend and are willing to dish out big bucks to claim sponsorship.
Unlike other sports, football especially, basketball games are probably the best for getting a product seen. The amount of time that a player is seen is much greater and the type of apparel they wear is much more popular with the general population. For example, someone will see basketball players like Lebron James on the court for 90 percent a game whereas football players are only on the field for short periods of time. Also more people will buy basketball apparel such as shoes or shorts before they go and buy a pair of football cleats or pants because they can wear it out in the street. It is just a more marketable business when it comes to fan recognization. This is why Nike was able to offer Lebron James a $90 million contract to wear their gear and no similar contract in the NFL is even comparable.
With the NBA being as marketable as it already is, when you get the best players in the league all playing together under the same roof then it is easy to see what kind of an opportunity companies have and why they want their names as sponsors so badly.
"Centerplate trying out system to check IDs at Texas arena" Volume 8 Issue 40 Page 13
This article talks about scanning drivers licenses at the concession stands of sporting events to ensure that the person buying alcohol is 21 years of age. Centerplate is the one's who are trying out this system to see how well it does. They also can check how many beverages that person has bought by scanning the ID.
I think this is a great ID to make sure the buyer is of age. They are trying this out at American Bank Center with is a venue of a college program. Obvisouly the crowd is mostly college students. It is key I think that ID's are scanned to make sure they are 21, to protect not only the University but the person selling the alcohol. I also like the idea that it shows how many drinks that person bought. I think this will keep many fans from getting out of control during games if their drinking is controlled. I think that other sporting areanas and stadiums should adopt this scanning process to cut down on minors being served and fans getting out of hand. When fans jumped out on the field a couple of years ago at baseball games, the fans admitted they had been drinking. A limit to how many beers they can buy would cut down on this I think. Definetly college stadiums should look into this just because of the underage kids that attend these sporting events.
"Reebok rolling ads with Australian Open Champ" Vol. 8 Issue 40, Page 5
This article was a short review of Reebok’s new front women, Amelie Mauresmo, Australian Open Champion is the new face on Reebok advertisements. Although she is relatively unknown in the United States, Mauresmo is extremely well known in her native France. The tennis player will be apart of the “I am what I am” campaign Reebok will be introducing next month. Mauresmo, the article tells us, is a skilled but underperforming player with little if any reputation in the United States. The Australian Open, which Mauresmo recently claimed victory, is the least known of the four Grand Slams in the United States. Mauresmo’s agent doubts that this win will spark interest in tennis fans, but is optimistic that follow up victories in any of the other Grand Slams will boost her popularity.
I choose this article because we are currently discussing marketing in lecture. Bringing on Amerlie Mauresmo as the new advertising campaign face seems risky for Reebok. Paying someone who is popular in her native land but has no name in the United States looks like a gamble. Reebok is taking the risk that Mauresmo may continue to be successful and shine a new light on Reebok’s advertising. Unfortunately, this may not be the case and the inconsistent Australian tennis player may not win another Grand Slam at all. This is a huge marketing risk for Reebok because it will either be a hit or miss. There is no guarantee this will be successful.
"Centerplate trying out system to check IDs at Texas arena" Volume 8 Issue 40 Page 13
This article discusses how Bank Center, a medium sized arena, is the test site for Counterplate. Counterplate is trying out a new system that will scan drivers’ licenses of people at concession stands at sporting events. This will ensure that the person trying to purchase alcohol is in fact of age to do so. It will also allow vendors to keep track of how many alcoholic beverages that person has bought.
I think that this is a really smart idea. It’s obvious that the majority of people in the stands are college students, many of which are underage. This system would at least hinder them being able to acquire drink at the game. I think that making sure the buyer is of age is smart. That way the vendor as well as the university is protected if something bad were to happen. I think the most important feature is that it is able to scan for validity. This way having a fake ID won’t help the person with one. I really like the fact that you can keep track of how many drinks an individual purchases. I think this could really help with keeping the crowd in control. This is something that I think should be implemented across the country especially in universities. I also think it would be something for arenas at the professional level might want to look into. Many instances that get so out of hand that they end up in the news, a lot times, involve very intoxicated fans. I think if this system where in place there would be a very effective deterrent. And in some ways make the event more enjoyable for those that choose not to drink.
Jeremy Glass "It's an activation celebration at NBA's All Star Weekend" volume 8 issue 40
This article specifies how the NBA all star weekend has had many more sponsors this year. Alot of major corporations are being very active in this years all star weekend. Corporations like Nike, Reebok, Adidas, Toyota, and Sprite are all involved this year in different activities. I think this is very good for the NBA, because they need this publicity since the NBA has went downhill the last couple of years. Alot of people I talk to about the NBA say that they hate it and they only play for the money. I don't believe so, and this article proves how I think because alot of the revenue from the all star weekend will go to to charity organazations or non profit organazations for kids and education. This is a nice big step for the NBA in getting all these sponsors at one time for one event. Just like they say the all star game is the show of all shows, and these corporations can greatly benefit this and some of the proceeds will go to youth education and charities like I said before. I really support what they are doing because I love the game of basketball and have played and watched it my whole life. Plus, NBA is on the rise and this publicity and sponsorship will only make more people have open eyes about this sport and start to watch it more frequently. In conclusion, I believe that this is a great oppurtunity to have more publicity and more viewersand next year maybe a little willrun off onto more companies, and the NBA all star weekend will have even more sponsors.
Matthew Jones
February 13-19
Volume 8 Issue 40
Foreign exchange firm signs on with PGA Tour
Scott Warfield spoke on the issue of foreign currencies throughout the PGA tours for all of the players. The Tour consists of many foreign competitors for many different currency exchanges. A company has now become part of the PGA that will take the winnings and pretty much deposit the money into the equivalence of the foreign exchange. Custom House Global Foreign Global Exchange is the largest independent foreign exchange company that has become partners with the PGA for the next four years. This company will make mixing money easier to conduct business. Custom House has over $10 billion with over 45,000 clients. This will make all PGA event easy to run to, thru overseas tournaments.
Volume 8 Issue 40 Pg. 3
Procter & Gamble’s Prilosec OTC announced a new sponsorship with NASCAR and Richard Childress Racing’s No. 31 car on the Nextel Cup Team driver Jeff Burton. The terms of the deal were not released to the public, but insiders say that the total will be in the mid-low seven figures a year. They also have a 2 year sponsorship with the NFL and an endorsement deal with Brett Favre. To start their sponsorship with NASCAR, Prilosec plans to hold a sweepstakes that includes an authentic cup car, travel, accommodations, tickets, and access to 20 races in 2007. The deal was arranged to last threw 2007 so all of the other Procter& Gamble contracts will be up for renewal at the same time. Steve Phelps, vice president of NASCAR, says with the merge or Procter& Gamble with Gillette will be one of NASCAR’s largest sponsors.
I feel that this is a good sponsorship for NASCAR. Anything to do or deal with Brett Favre will draw an immediate attention directly to him from the media and the people because he is such a role model for youngsters and so well respected. For it to jumpstart, I think that having prizes and little things to win such as tickets to the NASCAR race or accommodations while you travel there to watch it and other sorts of prizes will have a huge impact in the increase of drawing attention that will help your audience as well a your population.
Matt Valentine
Volume 8 Issue 40 page 7
XM doesn’t plan to be tuned out of NASCAR
XM Satellite Radio has been a growing part of NASCAR over the past few years and has made an impact on the growth of the sport. Establishing a strong programming presence, they hope to re-sign with NASCAR after their rights agreement expires at the end of this year. XM has not said whether or not they would continue to broadcast their 24 hour motor sports channel if the agreement is not made. Executive Vice President of programming Eric Logan said, “Covering motor sorts is a very large part of what we do”. XM is now being challenged by competitor Sirius over rights with NASCAR. The agreement they have with the sport is about 107 million dollars over the next five years. XM already has deals with drivers Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson who will both be hosting weekly one hour shows starting next month. XM doesn’t plan to focus only on NASCAR racing. They hope to broadcast many IRL races this year as well. Many insiders believe that XM needs to keep a close agreement with NASCAR in order for their motor sports channel to be successful. I strongly believe that XM should be a good partner with all types of racing so that they can attract as many customers as possible. I have been an XM subscriber for the past year, and even though I do not listen to NASCAR races all that often, I believe it would be a good move for the company to stay close with the sport so that they can gain a greater fan base.
Jacob White
February 13-19 2006
Volume 8 Issue 40
Page14
After big year on the field, Alexander ready for record paycheck
Shaun Alexander, the NFL MVP for the 2005-2006 season is the top free agent this year. Alexander prefers to stay in Seattle, and he may sign with the club before the free agent signing period even starts. However, if he does sign with the Seahawks, it will only happen if he gets the biggest contract ever signed by a running back. Jim Steiner, Alexander’s agent, says that he and his client are looking for a record breaking deal for a running back. Contract talks between the two parties have been taking place since mid season, and the outlook is good for a deal before the March 3 signing period start date. Alexander was the 19th overall pick in the 2000 draft and he signed a 5-year contract with Seattle. When his contract was up after last year, he signed a 1-year 6.32 million dollar deal. The deal is the same as what he would have made had the Seahawks made him their franchise player, but the only stipulation of the deal was that he would not get the franchise tag. Now, Alexander wants to stay in Seattle, but also realizes there is an opportunity to be very well off financially. Alexander has proven his worth finishing one yard short of the rushing title last year and winning MVP honors this season as the league’s top rusher, while also setting the record for most touchdowns in a single season with 27. In my opinion, Alexander has made his case for the biggest contract to ever be given to a running back. He is on pace to become one of the best running backs ever to play the game, and over the past six seasons, he has been among the league’s best. He is still young and full of potential and he has already carried his team to the Super Bowl. Although the Seahawks fell to a much better and more dominant Pittsburgh Steelers team, Seattle would be much better off if they were able to keep Alexander as the cornerstone of their franchise. If Alexander does happen to leave the Seahawks, whatever team signs him will become an automatic contender because of the talent that Alexander will provide and the pressure that he will take off his teammates. In closing, Alexander is one of the NFL’s best running backs, and he is deserving of a large pay day.
volume 8, issue 41
pg 10
"Trip to the track, family ties drive clothing deal"
The article talks about two women who have come up with a line of clothing for the female NASCAR fan. Lisa Heros and Kathleen smith, where friends that had thought about going into the clothing market but they were in need of a product that would allow them to stand out. After attending a NASCAR race and being offered 100’s of dollars for the shirts on their backs they had their product. After they researched it they found that 40% of NASCAR fans are women and there was no clothing on the market for them, just smaller men’s sizes. The current line includes shirts, skirts, hoodies, and much more. I think this company is a great idea, just about every other sport out there has men’s and women’s apparel, why shouldn’t NASCAR? With a female NASCAR fan base of almost half I think this company has noting to worry about. As long as they provide stylish, affordable, licensed NASCAR gear, they should be raking in the money.
Merrill Lynch forecasts 4 years of red ink for Mobil ESPN
Volume 8 issue 41 page 13
ESPN mobile is going to take a hit of up to $550 million dollars over the next four years, but according to Merrill Lynch will turn a profit of $1.5 billion dollars by year five. Questions were raised last week by Jessica Reif Cohen for the over all knowledge of Espn’s investment calling it “a bit perplexing” as well as saying Merrill Lynch does not really know who are the primary consumers for the premium priced service from ESPN. ESPN prices have dropped their prices $199 which was originally $399 as well as offering a low end subscription rate of $34.99 which was lowered from $64.99. This is a good indication that the test market was not as big of hit as expected it to be. Merrill Lynch is projecting that the numbers of ESPN’s mobile service will be in the range of 1.8 million subscribers by year 2010, but by the end of the current year they should end up in the area of 240,000 subscribers. This is less then what ESPN’s internal projection showed.
ESPN will spend around $225 million dollars on marketing and operations on this product, and will only make about $120 million. Next year they are expected to spend around $530 million, and make about $375 million. They are expecting to spend around $500 on each person to be a subscriber to ESPN’s mobile service this includes $400 in marketing and sales plus $100 for the cost of the phone. Reif also went on to say that since Espn’s significant premium prices will not be appealing to high income users.
Trip to track, family ties drive clothing Deal
Vol 8 issue 41 page 10
this article introduces us to two woman Lisa Heros and Kathleen Smith who have started their own clothing line called TrackCouture. The line is a female line for NASCAR. It all started when the two were given tickets to a race and had nothing to wear so they decieded to make their own shirts and were offered $100 by some women for the shirts off of their backs. They then did some research and realized that NASCAR had a 40% female fan base. The ladys had a connectiion to NASCAR with Smiths dad being Fred Smith owner of FedEx who sponsors NASCAR. NASCAR sells the merchandise on their website and the women also sell it on their web site TrackCouture.com
New stat for fantasy: More than 6M players
Volume 8 Issue 41 page 5
I chose this article because last year was the first time i've heard about fantasy baseball. I've been playing fantasy football for a long time but that is only 17 games a season compared to 162 games.
i think it would take a lot of dedication to look at your roster and set up your line-up and starters every single day. I know for fantasy football sometimes i would forget to change my line-up and that was only once a week i could not imagine doing that for a whole baseball season.
the article says that there is a prediction of a twenty percent increase for last year, spurred by new games and more marketing. They predict to have almost six million people across the globe playing fantasy baseball.
The MLBAM generated two million dollars from all of its fantasy licensing. CBS sportsline is looking for a big impact in fantasy baseball this upcoming season which should be starting ver shortly. MLBAM is also preparing several short form fantasy games that will not require to use all of the 162 games in the season so that might make it a little easier to follow and keep up with.
If it wasn't for the internet i dont think any of this fantasy baseball would be occuring because it would be way to difficult to keep track of everyones stats everyday in the MLB. Unlike the NFL the MLB plays everyday so instead of only trying to keep track of one full day of football you have to keep track of the players stats everyday and i think that would be impossible so i think the internet has a lot to do with the contribution of MLB fantasy
"Arena Football League adds OLN to its roster of networks" volume 8 issue 41 page 4
This article is about the Arena Football League and the deal it struck for one year with Comcast- owned OLN. There will be 11 games aired nationally on the cable network this season. In addition to the 11 national broadcasts, there will be 10-15 games on its regional network. OLN will air the games on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays but will not air opposite of NBC’s game.
I think this was a smart idea by OLN because the AFL has been around for 20 years and is starting to get more popular within the last couple of seasons. Marc Lowitz, AFL network president said he expects numbers of subscribers of arenafootball.com to almost triple from last season. There is definitely more coverage of the league now and it is becoming more familiar in homes. EA sports just released a video game called Arena Football. It was the first release but I think there will be more to come. All reviews I read about the game were good. The reason I think it was smart to sign a one year deal is because if it doesn’t do great then they wont lose out on much because it was only a one year deal. I think they will resign though because the league has been successful for 20 years now and is really becoming popular now with fans and merchandise. This is definitely a smart move by OLN. Before now one understood the game because of the smaller filed and different rules form the NFL, but now there is more coverage and explaining of the rules so people find it more interesting. The game is so much faster and high scoring than regular football too, so this gets more fans attention because of the rapid touchdown strikes and constant energy and playmaking.
Vol 8. Issue 41. Page 10
The article I did was about Nascar and this article is about two women who started their own line of clothing called TrackCouture. Lisa Heros and Kathleen Smith are big fans of Nascar due to the fact that Kathleen's father, Fred Smith is owner of FedEx who sponsors Nascar. The two women had tickets to a race and they had nothing to wear therefore, they decieded to make their own shirts. Women liked their shirts so much people offered them $100. This gave them the idea to start their own clothing line. To help the women with sales, Nascar sells the clothing on their website. The merchandise can also be bought on their web site TrackCouture.com
"Classic rounding third toward a profit"
Vol 8, Issue 41, page 3
This article is all about the sponsorships that are going to be at the World Baseball Classic. It is a 16 team, 39 game international tournament that starts March 3. Some of the major sponsors that will be present are Gatorade, MasterCard, Pepsi, Verizon, General Motors, and even Taco Bell. The MLB will split the uniform sponsorship with other retailers such as Majestic, Nike, and Mizuno. New Era will sponsor all the caps for all the teams except the Asian teams. Other licensed apperal also comes from retailers including Dick's, Modell's, and Bob's. They are expecting to sell more than 800,000 tickets for the 2 and a half week event. So far the MLB has already recieved over 4,000 requests for media credentials.
At the beginning of this, officals were hoping to just breakeven, but now they are going to exceed those expectations and make a small profit from this tournament. I think this a great way to get the whole world involved and hopefully get baseball better exposure in other countries. Having sponsors from all over the world be involved helps all the countries make a profit, not just the US. Officals are hoping all this exposure will have fans running to the stores to buy the products that are being shown and used by the players. What better way for these companies to get their names out there than to have it plastered on all the players and the field! Its a great marketing stategy.
Volume 8, Issue 41, Page 3
NFL, union not planning to delay free agency
This article discusses how the collective bargaining agreement between the NFL players association and the league runs out after the 2008 season, so they have begun to discuss the terms for the new agreement which would take effect after that deal is done. The article states that both sides are very far apart in coming to a compromise and as a result the free agent period this year could prove very difficult for teams trying to get under the salary cap because of the uncertainty in the future. I find this article very troubling as a huge football fan. Out of all the professional sports, the NFL has been the most successful. Not because it was always the most popular sport but because it has always had a salary cap which enforces parody. While some fans will say that dynasties in sports are great, I think that most people you will talk to love the fact that every NFL franchise has a shot at winning it all almost every year. In comparison, in baseball teams like the pirates and royals who reside in small markets never have a chance to compete with the bigger markets like the Yankees or Red Sox. It frustrates me that the NFL players association doesn’t see that this fact is the reason why they are so popular. While some big players will claim that a salary cap keeps them from earning top dollar like in other sports, I would disagree and say that because of the salary cap and parody, NFL players make more money indirectly from increased game revenues and television deals which are shared equally. Here’s to hoping that a new deal gets worked out that resembles the old deal more than any deal that exists in baseball or most other sports. There is a reason that football is the most popular sport in the country, here’s a hint it’s spelled P-A-R-O-D-Y, not P-A-Y-D-A-Y.
Jacob White
February 20-26, 2006
Volume 8 Issue 41 Page 4
Arena Football League adds OLN to its roster of networks
The Arena Football League agreed to terms on a one year deal with Comcast’s Outdoor Life Network. OLN will air 11 games nationally including at least one playoff game and 10 to 15 games regionally from the AFL schedule next year. Financial terms of the deal are undisclosed. The AFL also has television deals with Fox Sports Net and NBC. The NBC deal expires at the end of this year, and NBC has already cut the amount of AFL games it has shown this year in half due to the NHL and the Olympics. OLN will air games on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, but will not air games at the same time NBC has a game on. The AFL is also offering fans an online subscription in order to view games on arenafootball.com. Fans can pay $6.95 per game, $14.95 per month or $44.95 per season to view live games, and highlights on the website. AFL spokespeople say that they expect website subscriptions to increase from 3,500 to 10,000 by the end of this season. I personally think that the AFL needs all the help it can get. I don’t watch it, and I don’t find it exciting at all. I don’t really know many football fans that love the AFL, and I don’t know anyone that watches it let alone someone who is willing to pay to watch it. I’m predicting that NBC won’t renew its contract because it will be airing NFL games next year. Who watches the Outdoor Life Network anyway? The AFL is not a high priority on sports fans lists and I don’t expect the popularity to increase anytime soon. The NFL is much better, and I find it hard to believe that 10,000 people are willing to subscribe to areanafootball.com to watch games live. I certainly would not.
"Trip to track, family ties drive clothing deal" Volume 8 issue 41 page 10.
Lisa Heros and Kathleen Smith are two females that have been interested in NASCAR. They were going to a race and were given clothing to wear that they did not like at all. So they wore their own shirts. A lot of the females that were at the race liked their shirts and offered them money to make them some. With this offer they decided to start their own clothing line for women who are fans of NASCAR. They make a variety of clothing that is made to fit women.
They got into this deal because Kathleen Smith's father is the owner of FedEx Corp, who has been signed a sponsorship with NASCAR, and Mr. Smith set a meeting for the girl to get their line of clothing out there. You can purchase their clothes on trackcouture.com and nascar.com.
I think that the girls made out very well with this. There are a lot of women who are fans of NASCAR and it is true that they make shirts for them that are just men's shirts but smaller. I think these girls will make a good amount off of this because NASCAR will be around for a while and women will always be fans. So these girls are doing a good job and the pictures of the clothes seem to be stylish and cute which will bring in more customers also.
“St. Pete Times Forum plans lounge for those closest to ice”
By Julie Graham vol. 8 issue 41 pg. 15
Palace Sports and Entertainment is planning to open a Player’s Lounge in the St. Pete Times Forum, home of the Tampa Bay Lightning. The player’s lounge would be a bar\restaurant in the arena, located that people dining inside could catch a glimpse of the players going to and from the ice. The Player’s Lounge would only be open to certain season ticket holders.
Along with other renovations planned for the off-season, the Player’s lounge would be open only to season ticket holders, who have seats in the first two rows of the arena. Season ticket holders who have club seats or suites already have exclusive access to a high-end restaurant in the arena. And another lounge will be built for regular season ticket holders in the upper levels.
The price of the Player’s Lounge would most likely be included along with other attractive amenities and in the season ticket prices which are $3,999 (row B) or $7,500(row A).
Including these lounges for not only the premium ticket holders will most likely increase the number of ticket holders they have. I know from personal experience that I’m encouraged to buy bigger ticket plans when there are incentives included. With the lounge for regular season ticket holders at any level being included, everyone will feel like a valued costumer not just the big spenders. While the exclusive Player’s Lounge for the front two rows of ticket holders will make them more likely to continue purchasing tickets. Before they were shelling out large sums of cash but not being rewarded like the other bigger spenders were.
"Mist opportunity:Pepsi brand renewing MLS deal through 2008" vol.8 issue41 pg.5
Well known Sierra Mist is now the MLS’s biggest sponsor. Pepsi’s, Sierra Mist, has been in sponsorship with the MLS since 1996, and they just extended their contract through the year of 2008. They also added the U.S. Soccer Federation to their wide range of cooperate sponsorship. Sierra Mist already is in partnership with MLS star Freddy Adu. The executive vice president for the MLS stated that the deal would be close to some where around eight figures over the three years. Sierra Mist joins the other MLS sponsors such as Panasonic, Kraft, Budweiser and Gatorade. All which have renewed this year as well. Sierra Mist hopes to become the official soft drink of U.S. Soccer
"Mist opportunity: Pepsi brand renewing MLS deal through 2008" vol.8 issue41 pg.5
Well known Sierra Mist is now the MLS’s biggest sponsor. Pepsi’s, Sierra Mist, has been in sponsorship with the MLS since 1996, and they just extended their contract through the year of 2008. They also added the U.S. Soccer Federation to their wide range of cooperate sponsorship. Sierra Mist already is in partnership with MLS star Freddy Adu. The executive vice president for the MLS stated that the deal would be close to some where around eight figures over the three years. Sierra Mist joins the other MLS sponsors such as Panasonic, Kraft, Budweiser and Gatorade. All which have renewed this year as well. Sierra Mist hopes to become the official soft drink of U.S. Soccer.
I think this is a good move for U.S. Soccer. Pepsi is already the leading sponsor in many other sports, and now their just branching off and going with Sierra Mist. This can allow them in the future to do the same thing with other Pepsi brands. This gets the Pepsi name out there to the public but just in other form of Pepsi. Pepsi is still seeing all the profits from Sierra Mist’s name. I think this will now open the doors for Coke and other brands of Pepsi to come into the marketing world.
Games Still Captivate Viewers
Volume 8, Issue 41, Page 25
In this article it stated that the Olympics have not drawn the same audience it has in the past. One reason they thought was that the games were not bringing in the audience was that it is held every two years instead of every four like in the past. Another reason was that instead of watching the games to find out who wins, but now the internet gives fans to learn the medal winners before the games are televised in the home country.
I think that since the events were not around the same time zone that people did not want to wait up to watch the games or during the day watch them. The internet is the easiest way to find out if the viewers did not want to wait up to watch the Olympics. I do think that people are getting fatigued with the Olympics because every two years there is events. I know I am tired of the games after a while. I think that the games should go back to how it was with four years in between, and then more viewers would be ready for the games.
"New Stat for Fantasy..."
Volume 8 Issue 41 Page 5
This article discusses how Major Fantasy Baseball has been exploding in growth. Publishers of fantasy baseball are expecting 6 million members this year. This number is up 1 million from last year. This year was the introduction of several new, low cost fantasy games and several moves for heightened marketing for consumers is expected to launch the fantasy games and earn millions in revenue for the company. Sponsoring companies have also been downsized. There are now only three companies hold broad licenses to operate fantasy baseball games. These will include player names and team logos. This number is down from last year when MLBAM had 18 operators. These licenses are worth in the low 7-figure range, and MLBAM generated about $2 million from fantasy licensing. MLBAM is also kicking up their marketing efforts by holding Opening Day almost a month earlier than usual and also giving player drafting tips. The three license holders, ESPN.Com, Yahoo!, and CBS Sports-Line.com are also making strong efforts to promote fantasy baseball with a series of marketing initiatives, celebrity spokesmen and title sponsorships.
I wrote on this article because I always hear so much about fantasy baseball. It seems that whatever marketing strategies MLBAM is using are working very well. Growing by 1 million players in only one year is an incredible accomplishment for any company. By using big name license holders, MLBAM is also helping their cause because people like to be associated with companies such as ESPN.
Classic Rounding third toward a profit vol 8 issue 41 page 3
This is an article about the world baseball classic starting on march 3rd and running for most of the month. There are 16 international teams competing in this event. What they are trying to do is get as much sponsorship money and promotions as they can for the event. They expect to sell more than 800,000 tickets for the 2 1/2 week event. The MLB has already recieved more than 4000 requests for media credentials which by comparison to the world series on average is about 2500 more already. I believe that this world baseball classic is a very good idea to get surronding nations more involved in the sport of baseball and it seems to be working. It will relate kinda to the little league world series which a lot of people watch to see what other kids in the world have to offer when it comes to the sport. I think this will be a great success and continue for many years encouraging every nation to practice harder and try to be the winning country very similar to the olympics but only one sport. I think that it will help boost the sports economy too by helping promote sports and selling mercandise to not only american people but asian americans and other decents of people that may want to sport there native lands country.
NFL, Union not planning to delay free agency vol 8 issue 21 page 3
This article pertains to the ongoing issue in the NFL of not having a new collective bargaining agreement(CBA) in place and free agency looming. This issue has the possibility of forever changing the NFL and the way the NFL does business. As it stands now the owners and the NFLPA have until March 3, the start of free agency, to get a new CBA certified or many aspects of the NFL will change. By delaying free agency both sies would have a little bit more time to reach an agreement, which currently lookes far from happening. The ramefications of no new deel could open a pandoras box of new issues for the league. In the early stages of this change many teams will likely be forced to restructure salaries and rosters to meet a lower salary cap than the one that was projected to come with a new CBA. Also with no new CBA 2007 would not have a salary cap and this is a change that has NFL teams wary of how to structure future contracts. I feel that the break down in negotiations will lead to a system that could look similar to MLB and the NHL sytstem that was in place before their new deal included a salary cap. It is my opinion that the hard line taken by the NFLPA is a result of the power that was demontrated by teams in past seasons; most recently with the suspension of Terrell Owens. MLB has one of the strongest unions in all of North America and it appears the NFLPA is looking to follow suit and gain some power and revenue it feels it has been denied by owners.
Can he fly like Hawk? pg. 1, 32-33 Volume 8 Issue 41
This article talks about whether or not Shaun White can do for snowboarding what Tony Hawk has done for skateboarding. My opinion is that he will be able to bring more attention and possible more people into the world of snowboarding, but not on the same level as Tony Hawk. It is easier for a kid to pick up a skateboard and start, then it is for a kid to pick up a snowboard and start. According to the article the "Flying Tomato" as he has been called, already has sponsorships from some of the top companies in the world such as; Burton, Volcom, Oakley, Birdhouse, Adio, Mountain Dew, Playstation and Traget. At age 19 Shaun White can be consider the best snowboarder in the world, he has already won six Winter X Games medals, a silver medal in the Summer X Games, and a gold medal in this years Winter Olympics. Scott Sanford, a senior account director at Davie-Brown Talent said that, "He can dominate the 12-to-22 demographic...I don't know if he can reach an older demographic." I agree with that Scott Sanford is saying not many adults in the 35-45 range will go out and buy a product just because Shaun White is endorsing them. I guess this goes along with the saying, pick your poison. The video game company Ubisoft is working with White to release a snowboarding game, that will be similar to "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater." This will also help his image, because the 12-to-22 demographic knows of or has played Tony Hawk's video game, and Iam sure that this will happen with Shaun White's video game.
February 20-25
Volume 8 Issue 41
AEG’s cycling race gets fast start
AEG Cycling Race will be getting bigger in the next year. AEG has been finding more world class cycling teams. The multistage bike race will race throughout California and will bring teams such as Discovery Channel, team CSC and T-Mobile. These teams are top team in the world. With these teams, sponsors should be easy to find, but the biggest sponsor Amgen was let go. Media hurt the image of the race in the past with problem of doping. AEG’s CEO will pay the entire bill of the race when the sponsors cannot flit the bill. The race will be sponsored by Google and Adobe, silicone valley multibillion dollar companies. Philadelphia, New York City and the state of Georgia has their own bike race that brings money into the city and state. The AEG Company will lose money in the next two years, but in year three the AEG Company will in the positive range. Cycling races is growing in the United States and the pre Tour de France races will bring more spectators and following in the US.
Jeremy Glass, "NFL, union not planning to delay free agency." Volume 8 issue 41 pg 3
This article is on the NFL not delaying the free agency of players in this off-season. There is only two years left on the CBA or collecyive barganing agreement. This is a contract which allows the power of the owners to sign or trade players according to the rules of the agreement. If this CBA stays in tact then there will be no salary cap in the final year of the agreement, and no other agreement was negotiated then the next year could be disasteress. It would be awfull because some teams that have a good reputation for the last few years will have every free agent they want, and the free agent will go there because there would be no limit to how much they could get paid. This would put teams that are in a slump at a disadvantage. They would be at a disadvantage because their free agents would not want to resign and they would go elsewhere for to be on a better team and make more money. Another aspect this would affect would be rookie signings. If a rookie is drafted very high in the draft then he should get a good signing deal. But if he turns out to be a big bust then that certain team spent alot of money for nothing. Another thing about rookies being signed with no salary cap, then alot more rookie could or could not be signed to a team. For example, if there is a team with a very good reputation for winning then the team might go out and sign as many of the best free agents as possible. This would cut the number of rookies being signed to that team possibly in half. If this were to happen, then the teams who don't have the great reputation end up with more rookies and less veterans, and the team goes even more downhill. In conclusion, I think that the owners and high level NFL managers need to get on the ball a little and make a new CBA that makes the league have salary caps or the NFL will go downhill.
Matt Valentine
Volume 8 Issue 41 Page 8
Bobcats to study lowering prices
The newly formed Charlotte Bobcats are thinking about taking a step which may include reducing ticket prices for next season. A month ago Bobcat owner Robert Johnson did a total reassessment of the franchise and announced the possibility if lower prices. Season tickets renewals will be due within the next month, so a decision will have to be made public soon. The Bobcats have just moved into their new 265 million dollar home last year and the owner is already having to possibly lower ticket prices in order to intrigue a larger fan base. Johnson has stated that he really needs to investigate the situation and make a final decision so that they can properly market the idea. The team is new to the city, but the city is not really new to the fact of having a pro basketball team. In 2002 the Hornets franchise relocated to New Orleans, and fans have been reluctant to embrace another pro team since their last one was taken right out from beneath them. I believe that the city of Charlotte is not a suitable city for an NBA franchise. North Carolina is a basketball hungry state, but they have enough great college teams to root for. Plus, the city Charlotte is actually a boring place to be. There is nothing much to the city from what I saw when I have visited their a few times in the past. I don’t think that things are looking good for the Bobcats if they are considering lowering ticket prices this early on in their existence.
Feb 20-26, 2006 Volume 8 Issue 41
Classic rounding third toward a profit
Major league baseball came up with a plan to have 16 nations compete in a world baseball classic. Players from the participating countries will play for their respective teams. Major league baseball came up with the idea to popularize baseball world wide. Many of the top sponsors of the MLB will benefit from this world baseball classic says the experts. I think major league baseball came up with the perfect idea to get the world more interested in baseball. Not only will baseball benefit from this but the major sponsors like, MasterCard, Gatorade, and AnheuserBusch will also benefit from this. First they thought they would break even which was fine to get baseball out there to all of the nations. Now since some many people are interested in the classic, the sponsors are going to make a profit from this. Gatorade will have the coolers in the dugout and MasterCard will try to leverage its marketing right outside of the United States. If I was apart of a large company I would definetly try to get a commercial, or advertisement on something to get my company out there. I think this baseball classic is going to be a huge event. I know I'm very interested in seeing the best players in the world play for their own country. I also feel the MLB will gain popularity and a lot more fans this upcoming season.
Arena Football League adds OLN to its roster of Networks...Feb 20-26, volume 8 issue 41, page 4
Arena Football League and Comcast owned OLN have reached a one year deal that calls for 11 games to be aired nationally on cable network. In addition to the 11 nationally aired games, comcast will air 10 to 15 games on it's regional network and one playoff game nationally. NBC has decreased it's AFL coverage because of NHL and the Olympic coverage, although they plan to broadcast 18 regular season games nationally or regional, down from 32 last year. OLN will air on friday, Saturday and Sunday.
I think that a lot of people will start to watch AFL because they dont have the NFL on and it tends to get boring not having football to watch. Its not as axciting as the NFL but it can replace it. Also, it brings something different to the fans, the football field isnt as long as the regular NFL, it's more running and less passing so it should keep peoples attention when they watch. I like arena football, it's just different to watch the NFL and then watch arena league. I think that they will get more people this year to watch the games.
Vol. 8 Issue 41 Pg. 6
Mercedes Extends Tournament Partnership
Mercedes renewed its sponsorship for the PGA tour at the Kapula Resort in Hawaii for the next 4 years. They have been sponsoring the tournament since 1994, and limit the participating golfers to people who have won PGA titles in previous years. Sponsoring this tour continues to make sense for Mercedes because golf is the “No. 1 lifestyle interest of our consumer base”, Carol Goll, general manager of exposure for Mercedes Benz. In the 2006 event they awarded 5.4 million in prize money. Next years event has been planned for Jan. 4-7. This tournament has been around since 1953 and was in Las Vegas, then moved to California in 1969, and then in 1999 to Hawaii and has been there since. Other PGA sponsors such as Nissan has been sponsoring since 1987 and has also extended its sponsorship in LA till 2010.
Nyeemah Shubert
Vol 8,issue 41, pg 13
Radio executives worry over trend of sport teams buying satations
I pick this article because it explains the way sports teams are evolving.
In the article they are engaging in the idea of sports teams buying out stations to bring in more viewers. The Buying of the stations are not because of the rights fees, they are morely because of the strong signals that are provided throught the station. With this being done, that would give the team full control of programming.
In Los Angeles, the Angels of Anaheim owner Arte Morento paid a talked about estimate cost of $42 million to buy KXME-AM. The is a station with 50,000 watts which gives off a great signals. This is a popular, spanish based language station known in Southern California.
Most radio executive produces are expressing their anger because they are allowing this to occur. "They don't have the infrastructure of radio stations", replied Joel Hollander CEO of CBS radio. Hollander also predicts that the teams will find it more difficult and expensive to run a station.
On the other hand, Tom Mead replies "Baseball hasn't been the focus on some of these stations", with these deals this could create a home for the teams who have been changing stations for so long.
In conclusion, with the purchasing of the stations this could give all control to teams which would then allow them to schedule shows, create more ways of promotion and advertise their clubs more effectively.
Vol. 8 issue 41 pg. 3
"NFL, Union not planning to delay free agency"
This article was about how the NFL Players Association was trying to push back the date of the free agency signing, so that this will let the union settle their arguments on the Collective Bargaining Agreement(CBL). But on the other hand NFL spokesperson, Greg Aiello, said that there had been no discusions about changing the league calender. The problem that exist in this article is how much money will the players get in the new deal. Another problem with this is that with the salary cap, it might be tough to sign certain free agents or rookies. Lastly, Kessler, who works in the NFL's Player Association said that, " the only optimistic thing is by having these meetings", which he is referring to the CBL.
Overall, in my mind I think that the NFL needs to reach some type of agreement about the CBL. I think that is more important than trying to set back the free agency date. The ulimate goal should be to play football becuase you love the game, not becuase you want to be the biggest paid athlete in the game.
Volume 8 issue 41. page 3
NFL, union not planning to delay free agency
This article is about the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement. Still, the two sides have not met each others demands. The two sides have been fighting over how much money the players will get in the new deal. The CBA expires in 2008, so the league only has one more year under this CBA. The second year would have no salary cap.
The reason for all the fighting now is because the free agency start date is March 3. Now that there is one more year left of a salary cap, teams with free agents and rookie contracts under the current system could prove tricky.
Under the current system, each team has a certain amount of money they can spend on there players each year. Now that the CBA is coming close to its end, the players are demanding more money than what the league wants to give them. So the two sides have to come to an agreement or the NFL could end up like the MLB.
I feel if that happens, teams will not be as competitive as others because some teams have more money to spend on high profile players than do other teams. Sort of like the Pittsburgh Pirates compared to the New York Yankees. At the same time I feel that the players should earn what they are worth. What I think is best is the two sides agree on a amount higher than before but not an unlimited cap.
Gary Mader HPED 481 BLOG 4
Can he fly like Hawk? pg. 1, 32-33 Volume 8 Issue 41
The article talks about Shawn White and the impact he is having on professional snowboarding and whether or not he will be able to have an impact on the sport similar to that of pro skateboarder Tony Hawk. At only age 19, Shawn White has become the face of professional snowboarding. He has several sponsors including Target, Playstation, Mountain Dew, Adio, Birdhouse, Oakley, Volcom. With his six Winter X Games Medals, a silver medal in the Summer X Games, and a gold medal in the Olympic Games, he is considered the best freestyle snowboarder in the world. He is even supposed to be coming out with his own video game, similar to Tony Hawk’s Proskater which was hugely popular. Although snowboarding has become very popular these days, I don’t think Shawn White will quite reach the level that Tony Hawk did. To be able to snowboard, obviously, you need to be in a cold climate, have access to a ski resort, and buy very expensive gear and an expensive snowboard. It is much easier to pick up a skateboard and find a flat, level area to skate on. So although White appeals greatly to the 12-22 demograhpic, it is just too hard to have an impact comparable to that of Tony Hawk’s.
'Bobcats to study lowering prices'
Volume 8 Issue 41 PG 8
Earlier this month as the Bobcats defeated the Supersonics they experienced their smallest home crowd of the season. This was brought to the attention of owner Robert Johnson and he discussed their must be a reassessment of the franchise and possibly introduce lower ticket prices for the upcoming season. The Bobcat ticket prices jumped from 25 percent to 100 percent with the newly constructed facility funded by the public of Charlotte. Johnson explains that the franchise needs to step back and evaluate the situation in what needs to be improved. He wants the atmosphere in the arena to appeal to the fans and make them want to come back. Johnson donated 1 million dollars to a local YMCA in Charlotte but does not feel it helped as much because he is not a local.
I think with the new facility being built the organization felt they needed to make some of the money back immediately and unfortunately that plan did not work. I believe they must lower the ticket prices as the first step and re-evaluate some marketing and promotion strategies to draw a larger fan base in the future.
Bobcats to study lowering prices
Midseason reassessment comes as club plays to below-average crowds
The owner of the Charlotte Bobcats, Robert Johnson, decided to reassess his NBA franchise earlier this month due to poor crowd attendance. Johnson and the rest of the Bobcats’ marketing committee are looking into their operations to find out what they can do to make more people come to the games. The article states that they are averaging about 16,300 people per home game this season, which is about 1,000 below the league average. This 16,300 is up 10 percent from last year, but merely because the Bobcat’s got a new arena.
To fix the attendance problem, Johnson was looking into lowering the prices placed on the tickets. The ticket price increased by 25 percent from last year (I’m assuming due to the new arena). Bringing economics into the mix, Johnson first needs to calculate the elasticity of a Bobcat ticket in the city of Charlotte. He must feel that the demand for Bobcat tickets is elastic because he thinks by lowering the prices the total revenue will increase. He’s hoping the quantity demanded for a ticket will exceed the price change he makes.
Attending an NBA game would definitely be considered a luxurious good instead of a necessity. When people’s incomes rise (or when prices decrease) there will be more purchases of the good. So whether or not Johnson’s theory of lowering the price will be successful or not would best be decided by an economist.
Nyeemah Shubert-Beck
"NFL draft may be high stepping to Radio City"
Volume8,Issue42,pg4
In this article they are talking about how the NFL Draft has been moved to a new location.The new location of last years and past years draft was in the Theater at Madison Square Garden because of the tension between the New York Jets and Cablevision, this then created the move of the whole entire NFL Draft location. This tension was created over the Manhattan Stadium. This stadium created a little competition to the MSG, complains cablevision. So cablevision retaliated by creating a disrespectful campaign ad about the New York Jets. Most New York state politicians were outraged by these ads, refused to support or provide money to their future projects.
The arguement then had aroused the issue of where the draft will now be held. The word on the street is the next draft will be held in the Radio City, replied spokemen Brian McCarthy, who then had no further comment.
Between the MSG and Radio City, there are not many places in New York where the draft could be held at a comfortable setting.It would either be too large or too small. That would be for both draft teams and those people who come to the draft annually, said one executive.
In addition, the NFL Draft is schedule to appear on April 29-30. Time Warner and Cablevisions are said to be the only two stations to decline the channel.
NCAA title games head to pro venus, Volume 8, Issue, 42, pg. 28
This is a great article, is talks about how the NCAA champion bouts can not be held in regular NCAA venues anymore because of the size needed to hold the fans. This shows a couple of diferent unsaid facts about the sport, the NCAA venues,and the Pro venues. First off, from this class and just the growing respect of the Sports Industry there are two sports that I perosnally would like to get into as a sports marketer, and that would be NASCAR, and Lacrosse. Lacrosse seems to be growing everytime you look in the papers. I am a person who in high school never even knew much about the sport, but through my experiece someone in my major could not help to not know the game. NCAA venues seems to be loosing revenue, but on the other hand they know that they can not adequetly hold the numbers in the masses as pro stadiums do. Now the future of Lacrosse is during division championship games, expect to travel to a large pro stadium.
Volume 8, Issue 42 page 4
"NFL draft may be high stepping to Radio City"
The NFL draft has been taken place in madison square garden in previous years, but now they are trying to have the draft in Radio City music hall which the cable operator manages. The Radio City HAll is one of the possible sites to have this years NFL draft. it has Cablevision Last year at Javits center, the NFl built a temporary theater and it still wasnt large enough to contain all the fans who usually attend the draft.
the NFL draft can alsoreturn to Mdison Square Garden in NY but it wants to upgrade the draft into even more of a spectacle. Radio City would provide a thematic backdrop that effort.
I think it may be time for a new permenant spot for the NFL draft. If they are syaing that MSG isn't good enough anymore maybe they should take some money out of everyone's paycheck and make a new place for the NFL draft that wil be here and productive for many years to come
"Sponsors back USA Basketball"
Volume 8 issue 42 front page
This article is about the USA basketball program campaigning for marketing deals for the 2008 Beijing games. They have reportedly reached and agreement with Gatorade, Nike, and McDonalds for around 16 million dollars in sponsorship revenue for three years. This is an effort to improve the performance and perception of the USA men’s basketball team. Instead of sponsors getting the 17 day advertising buy during the Olympics, they will receive global activation opportunities that coincide with the three year commitments USA Basketball is seeking from players.
This is a good idea for both sides I think. I think the committee is smart for changing things up and their approach, plus I feel that it would be smart for a sponsor to jump on this opportunity. In the past couple Olympics USA has been a major disappointment and many star players have declined to play on the team. Things have already started to change after hiring legendary college coach Mike Krzyzewski. All-stars such as Lebron James and Kobe Bryant have said they will play and many other top stars are willing to play too. Shaquille O’Neal may even suit up for the red, white, and blue. I think sponsors will make out on this deal because more people are going to follow this year’s games because of the buzz being created already. Many fans were disappointed by the USA’s poor play and lost interest and hope in 2004. This is a revamped team with something to prove and Americans will watch to make sure we prove we are the best in the world on the basketball court.
Volume 8 Issue 43 page 13
"Big East seeks solid increase for hoops rights in TV talks"
The Big East is in talk with CBS and ESPN to renew its basketball contract. After losing top football schools to the Atlantic Coast Conference, forcing amendment to its football agreement with espn. With five new baskebtall schools including Louisville and Cincinnati, the conference believe its in line for a healthy increase in rightrs deals that paid 28 million dollars over 4 years from ESPN and just under 20 million dollars for six years for CBS.
As Cbs puuting games on its new CSTV on the table, that cant be broached as long as ESPN is in its exclusive window for the cable rights.
Mike Tranghese, Big East Commissioner, says that he cant talk to anyone about ESPN rights or CBS rights unless they get out of the window.
Tranghese also said that he knoiws people that work for ESPN and he can have a good woirking reationship with people at ESPN
February 27- March 5
Volume 8, Issue 42
Fox resurrects ‘Prime Ticket’ for FSN West 2 rebranding
The media is portrayed in this are and Andy Bernstein speaks on ESPN2 with higher ratings. Bernstein shares information about the old days of having sport channels designed for the area of which is shown. The Fox Sport Net is generating area specific channels and programs. From FSN West to FSN East, games and particular teams will have a show. FSN West will have Dodgers Live and will be aired after the Dodger games. From the specific area in Southern California with many sporting teams, FSN West 2 was made. FSN deciding to call this channel FSN Prime Ticket. Fox wants the channels to equal in view to keep both running in such a high sport team area.
Bernstein then tells the success of ESPN2 with their reformatting of shows and moving shows around. Cold Pizza being aired once brought an 82 percent gain from 8am to noon viewing attracting 37,000 new viewers. ESPN2 has realized the new increases and has moved to a new schedule as of January 30 and viewers and ratings have increased.
March 6-12
Volume 8 Issue 43
Victory kick-starts Puma Golf launch
“Fear the familiar,” Puma Golf motto has just won their first event. PGA Tour player Geoff Ogilvy has just won the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. Sponsored by Puma, Geoff will not be in the debut commercial till March 18th. A giant push for the new golf company to the industry with a win before it will be in magazines and on TV. Golf sponsorships are becoming more youth oriented brands. Under Armor and Puma will be huge hits in the retail stores. Puma and Under Armor are at the retail stores for their previous lines, but now the golf line will be joining them with a younger look into the golf world.
Vol 8, Issue 42, page 3
The article I did talks about "Hardlines" coming to Pittsburgh. There were many companies that met there such as Dick's Sporting Goods, Finish Line, Giant Eagle, and Hat World just to name a few. The Pittsburgh location was chosen before they won the super bowl. I feel this looks very good for the city of Pittsburgh and for the Steelers. At this event there was a mini trade show to show off some new items for next year. The article also stated that this past year was a record year. In addition, Dan Rooney, Steelers owner was also speaking for the over 200 individuals.
Volume 8, Issue 43, Page 25
The article I did was "Pat-downs face challenge" which states that the NFL's pat-downs rule violates fans' constitutional rights, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. I feel this is crazy and that pat-downs should continue to happen. After September 11, 2001 people became scared for their safety not only in their homes but also in public. These pat-downs were to keep things away from going in the stadium such as alcohol, weapons and drugs. I feel that if the NFL does not require pat-downs people will then resume taking this stuff into the stadium. Has the NFL done studies on violence since having pat-downs?
There are a few people sueing the NFL and in Tampa last October pat-downs were banned under a state court ruleing. What are pat-downs hurting? When people do get patted-down they hardly touch you and they do respect your privacy and space but are still in search of the bad things they are supposed to look for.
In addition, I feel that pat-downs should stay a rule. Is this really a big problem to sue over??
Vol. 8, Issue 42, page 4
NBA Sponsors Seeing Green in St. Pat’s promotion
For the first time the NBA is promoting St. Pat’s day by trying to push green jersey sales of the New York Knicks, Boston Celtics, and the Chicago Bulls. They are advertising in Slam, School Sports, and Dime Magazine. They have not said how much they are spending on this promotion but will start selling the jerseys in early March. The Celtics will wear their green jerseys on March 12th, the Knicks on St. Pats day, and the Bulls on March 18th. To sponsor the green jersey night both the Knicks and Bulls have sponsorships with Miller Brewing Co and the Knicks also have one with Tourism Ireland to promote the Ryder Cup on Sept. 22-24 and the Celtics are still working on getting one. At the Chicago game there are planning to give away t-shirts to fans and have Irish Dancers perform. Also in New York they have partnered with a local insurance company and sponsored a Latino and Asian night, for the Latino night Coco-Cola is also planned to help sponsor. I think having the St. Pats day promotion is a good idea, but for the team that is celebrating the day after I feel that it will not be as exciting since all the fuss of the holiday will be over.
"NFL draft may be high stepping to Radio City"
Vol. 8. Issue 42 Pg. 4
Last year was the last time that the NFL draft would be held in the Theater at Madison Square Garden. This was due to the the disagreement between Cablevision and the New York Jets over the Jet's proposed Manhattan stadium. Cablevision thought of the new stadium as a competitor to its Madison Square Garden. This upset the league so they desided to move it elsewhere. Last year it was at the Jacob Javits Convention Center, but the seating and space wasn't up to par. This year they are considering Radio City Music Hall because it is not too small and not too big for the event. One problem is that Radio City is run under MSG, but radio city is one of the only places in NY that has enough space for the event. The NFL could go back to MSG, but they want to upgrade the image of the draft. "It puts a different spin on it...Radio City Music Hall is entertainment." I think it would be a good idea to move to a new location. I would not even consider going back to MSG because of how they treated the NY Jets. I think Radio City Music Hall would be a different type of environment and atmosphere. It could also bring more attention to the draft.
NFL Draft may be high stepping to Radio City
Volume 8, Issue 42, Page 4
In this article, the NFL wants to make the NFL draft more comfortable for all the fans and the team representatives that attend this event each year. The Theater at Madison Square Garden has had a ten – year run hosting the Draft. The NFL had to build on and create an alternative theater to accommodate the fans in a area like a sports bar.
I think that the move to the Radio City will give the spectators more room and also give the fans from all over the country to come to an easier location. Also, as the article said the previous location was known more for sports and Radio City is known for entertainment. This gives the sports world a new face as even more entertainment as it is known for now. The NFL has moved to many venues, but the all were never the right size, either to big or to small. In my opinion, I think that this move will be the right choice for the NFL Draft.
"Dirt Motorsports adds 3 NASCAR's world"
Vol.8 Issue 43 Pg.7
Tim Deery, Rob Butcher, and Ben Geisler are three new executives that are trying to maximize dirt-track racing. Dirt Motorsports is the largest sanction for sprint, late model, and modified dirt track racing. Dirt track racing is by far not a very popular sport, but with the help of these 3 men who have ties in with NASCAR, they are hoping to increase the marketing, broadcast, and sponsorships. Dirt Motorsports operates the World of Outlaws, which is huge in dirt racing. So far, no one has been able to get peoples interest in dirt track racing, but they are trying to grab that asset. They are planning on molding all 3 forms of the Outlaw racing. The main ones are the Sprint Car Series, Late Model Series, and the Advance Auto Parts Modified Super Dirt Series. I think bringing in 3 big names from NASCAR is a smart move by Dirt Motorsports. It definetly can't hurt the organization or the sport. Bringing in these guys with the experience and knowledge they have can only increase the interest in dirt track racing. NASCAR gets alot of sponsorships, so they are hoping to get some for dirt racing too.
"Big-name equipment makers show interest in lacrosse, but is there enough business? Vol.8, Issue 42, page 25
Lacrosse is becoming a more popular sport and is growing past the traditional Northeaster/Mid-Atlantic boundaries. Companies have been wanting to sponsor more of Lacrosse recently because is gettings more popular. New Blalance happens to be the largest sponsorship in Lacrosse. They have been introducing new equipment for younger players.
Nike has not been a big sponsorship for lacrosse, they occasionally will have a little swoosh on some apparel but you won't find it on much. The director of MLL thinks that Nike will eventually get highly involved in sponsoring lacrosse because of its growing popularity.
Bacharach is a big store in Maryland that sells sports equipment catalogs and they are still one of the top sellers for lacrosse, but they think the market will die down soon because of all the other name brands coming in and sponsoring.
I think that Nike and New Balance will succeed if they sponsor Lacrosse because it is a growing sport and it's only in the beginning stages. I think if they keep with it they will get enough business and make profit off of this sport. They were comparing it to hockey, and I agree that lacrosse can make them money as do the ice hockey teams.
"NBA's Chicago predraft camp going to Disney" Vol. 8, Issue 43, page 4.
The NBA predraft camps are going to be help in Orlando at the Disney sports complex instead of in Chicago. It was previously held in Chicago because of where Chicago is located, but they think moving it to Florida will attract better players. It will be aired for six hours on NBA and ESPN. They are looking to build upon the partnerships with Disney, ABC and ESPN.
I think that this will be an alright change because they are looking to draft more talented players and if they think that moving the predraft to a different location in order to get these better players than I think its a good idea. If it fails and doesn't work out the way they want it, then in the upcoming years they can relocate again. So I think it's a good idea that they are changing it a little bit and if it doesn't work they can always go back to the way it was before.
Vol. 8 issue 43 pg 4
NBA’s Chicago Predraft camp going to Disney
This year the NBA is having its predraft camp at the Disney Sports Complex instead of in Chicago were it has been since 1982. The move will be beneficial because the Disney complex is more modern and also located on their property is medical and training facilities as wel as hotels. This year the event will run June 6-10 and is one week long. The camp is used to show off talent and a chance for team officials to watch the players. Last year they had a special on ESPNU, which also was aired on NBATV, but this year they plan on televising 6 hours of coverage also on ESPNU and NBATV. I think this is a good idea for parts of the camp to be televised because when its time for the NBA draft at the end of june people will have an idea of who to look for and what to expect from the player.
Issue 42, Vol. 8 pg4
"NBA Sponsors Seeing Green in St. Pat's Promotion"
This article talks about how the NBA is reaching out to help promote St. Particks Day. This is the first time any NBA team(s)have promoted this day. The Three teams that are taking part in the promotion are the Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, and the Boston Celtics. As part of promoting the holiday, the teams are advertising special green jerseys that are for sale and are going to be worn by players. These jersey's are advertised in a few magazines reguarding the NBA. The dates however seem kind of odd when the teams wear the jersey's. The Celtics and the Knicks are wearing their jersey's before and on St. Patricks Day. While on the other hand Chicago isnt wearing them till after the holiday. Also, although the teams are wearing the jersey's to promote the holiday, some teams will also be giving away shirts and putting on different events to celebrate the day during the course of the game.
I think that this is a very good idea for the NBA to do this becuase it will show the fans that players along with the NBA celebrate holidays. This will help the fan relate better to a player and make the player seem just like a normal person. I also believe in the future that more teams will get involved in this not just three teams. Lastly, I'm just curious to see how the reaction is to when the Bull's wear there Jersey's, since that will be after the holiday.
Issue 43 Vol.8 pg.29
"NBA's 'silent game' exciting in arena, but feels flat on television"
This article talks about how the NBA on February 26 the Orlando Magic and Houston Rockets had a "silent game' which ment that there was no music during play and that there was no tv announcers. This enabled the crowd to be able to witness more things. One thing being is that you can hear the players and officials communicate better on the court. Another way a silent game was better is that when the team was doing very well or hit a big shot the crowd was louder. They also had a pep band and an organist to pump up the crowd during the right moments. There were also a couple of things that weren't so good about having a silent game and that is that with no announcers some of the excitement was lost. NBA TV analyst Gail Goodrich said that with no announcers, "What I think you miss would be the real excitement of a great play." A second thing the game was lacking was instant replay. Overall the Magic officials liked what they saw. Joel Glass, director of communication, said "it gave fans a unique entertainment package."
I think that this silent game was a good thing it let the fan watch a game from a different perspective. I think in the future there might be more of these games to come.
Michelle Mattis
March 8, 2006
Volume 8 Issue 42, Sponsors back USA Basketball front cover and page 7
The article goes into how our USA basketball program has reached an agreement with sponsors for the 2008 games. Four major corporate agreed to sponsor the olympic team on a three year deal with 16 million in sponsorships. These four companies include, McDonalds, Nike, State Farm Insurance, and Gatorade. The deals with these large corporations is the US efforts to improve the preception of the after a lack luster performance in the 2004 olympics when the team grabbed a bronze medal. The reason I say that is because our USA olympic team has always beat every other counrty by a lot over the years. Jerry Colangelo managing director of USA Basketball senior men's national team is trying to put together a team that will succeed in the 2008 games. Colangelo has picked Mike Krzyewski the coach of Duke Blue Devils as the Olympic coach. They are picking the invitees at this point which are 23 and are keeping 12. Colangelo's approach towards the players is different since in 2004 games when many big names declined to play. He has already snatched Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, and Dwyane Wade. So it should be very interesting to see how the team does. I agree with this article to try to bring back the gold to the US. When you think of the dream team and think of how they destroyed the competition. I think that Colangelo is trying to assemble a team to abuse the opposition. I emphasize team becasue what players they picked in 04 was some of the best players in the world, but didnt play as a team. They had all athletes and no shooters. This year they are going to have a mix of ahtletic alshers who get to to the hoop and finish with a mix of there point bombers like Ray Allen. Along with the bigmen inside to don\minate the paint. This year with Kobye on the team and his never quit attitude I believe the sky is the limit.
Las Vegas Mayor takes case to NBA team owners, execs
vol 8 issue 42 pg 11
This article is about Las Vegas trying to get a pro sport team, namely an NBA team in this article. Las Vegas has been trying to get a pro team for several years now, and will host the NBA All-Star game next year. One of the major reasons Vegas has had trouble getting a pro team is the imagine that the city still portrays in most of the country. The fear that pro leagues have about having a team in Las Vegas is that gambling will have a negative imagine and impact on the team that is there and that team's league. David Stern, the comissioner of the NBA says in this article that there will not be a NBA team in Las Vegas as long as there are betting on NBA games in Vegas casinos. Although I don't feel that gambling on sports is as evil as many want to believe, I do agree with David Stern on this point. No league or fan should have to worry about whether a player is throwing a game because of a bet, or for a team have to worry if a player or employee is in trouble because of gambling. In my opinion unless Las Vegas develops some way to ease the concerns that leagues have about their games and gambling, it will be a long time before we see a major pro sport team in Las Vegas.
"ESPN tries to bolster mobile unit"
Volume 8, Issue 42 pg 4
ESPN recently introduced new elements of Mobile ESPN after a rough start on the market. Mobile ESPN came with much criticism due to their relatively high prices, the “walled garden” concept and its uncertain mainstream appeal.
Prices of the phones, offered by Sprint, have been reduced from $399 to $199. The company is also offering new low-end monthly service plans that were reduced to $34.99 per month from $64.99 per month.
The “walled garden” that Mobile ESPN has used is the restriction of certain unapproved websites. These websites include some of ESPN’s major competitors. ESPN executives claim that certain websites have been restricted to avoid technical corruption from software downloads.
ESPN is still confident in their product despite the rough start. According to ESPN’s president, the company is happy with the progress they’ve made so far and are still working towards making the product better. Some aren’t as confident in Mobile ESPN. A Merrill Lynch analyst believes the product will not start showing profit until at least the year 2010.
I think ESPN is doing the right thing by lowering their costs and trying to make Mobile ESPN more appealing to consumers. Even though mobile technology is something most people want, much of the time it’s not worth the price. By lowering prices, I believe ESPN will see more sales on their product. Unfortunately the company will not be making as much profit from the service with lower prices, but hopefully for ESPN more consumers will purchase the phones and plans to make up the difference. Although ESPN is confident in new growth in their audience, it is doubtful they will reach their goal of 250,000 subscribers by the end of this year. The service is still too new to build that much of an audience before the end of the year.
NFL draft may be high stepping to Radio City
Vol 8 issue 42 page 4
They compare this article to the cold war because their are two corporations battling for the spot of hosting the NFL draft. Its between cable vision systems corp. and Radio City. Last year cable vision was extremely rude to the New York Jets so I recommend that they do not use someone like that because that will just bring about bad media coverage causing people to not want to watch the draft. They are very confused where they should hold the event saying that most places are to small and others are to large. I don't understand how anywhere can be to large it will just allow more people to come to the draft and if they don't want that many people they have the money to just section off the big room so that it is more concealed. They are also debating which cable operators they should use to broadcast the draft since cable vision and time warner have already declined to carry it.
Sponsors back USA Basketball
vol 8 issue 42 pg 1&7
This article talks about how the USA Basketball program landed a three year $16 million dollar deal for the 2008 Beijing Games. The sponsors that are backing the team are McDonalds, Nike, State Farm Insurance and Gatorade. At last years games in China, Reebok, Gatorade, Spalding and Allstate were sponsors of the USA Basketball Team. Since last USA Basketball failed to compete up to bar in the pervious Olympics, that they’re trying to change the image and perception of the team. In the past, sponsors would buy a 17 day advertising spot with the team. This year the team will play exhibition games in China and Korea. Also, they will train in Las Vegas in preparations for the games. This allows sponsorship to start as soon as the team starts to practice and play exhibition games in order to get ready for the 2008 Olympics. McDonalds was a sponsor last year in NBA’s China Games. State Farm has never had a sponsorship with the NBA. Nike and Gatorade have been with the NBA for years now and remain the two current NBA league partners. It is believed that these four sponsorships will create the most revenue ever created by sponsorships with the USA Team. Key players are Lebron James and Kobe Bryant. The coach this year will be Duke University’s coach Mike Krzyewski. I think that this is a good idea and will allow business to sponsor something that will world wide and highly known. They get to sponsor our countries USA’s Basketball team. Nike and Gatorade are always seen in the NBA and it just wouldn’t be right if they weren’t sponsoring the USA’s Basketball Team then.
NCAA title games head to pro venues
volume 8 issue 42 page. 28
This article is talking about how the NCAA is going to move their men's lacrosse national championship to professional staduims. They have done this for the past three years, with two being in Baltimore and the last one was in Philadelphia. Over the past three championships the NCAA has an average attendence of a little over 42,000 people. Compared to the 19,706 people that came to the 2002 championship held at Rutgers Stadium. John Williams, the director of lacrosse cahmphionships says that, "Ticket sales for this year;s championships are about 7,000 ahead of last year at this point before the event. The 2006 National Championship will be held in Philadelphia while the 2007 Championship will return to Baltimore and the 2008 Championship will held in Gillette Stadium. The NCAA keeps 85 to 90 percent of ticket sales for the three day event.
I think this is a smart move by the NCAA because it is a large money maker for them. From 2002 to 2005 the attendance has double. This is also openning the door for the NCAA to begin to market lacrosse to the public. Lacrosse seems like a game that public would enjoy because it has the what people are looking for, high scoring games and a lot of contact, with the hitting and slashing that occurs during the game. Philadelphia is a good city for lacrosse with the Phildelphia Wings of the NLL winning six world championships since 1987. It is also very easy to get to from New York and Maryland, which are two other states that are big in lacrosse.
Jacob White
February 27-March 5, 2006
Volume 8 Issue 42 Page 4
NBA, Sponsors seeing green in St. Pat’s Promotion
Three NBA teams will be wearing green jerseys in St. Patrick’s Day promotions. The Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks and the Boston Celtics will all be participating in the campaign. Advertisements for the event are in Slam, School Sports and Dime magazines; however the advertisements do not push any particular retailers for fans to buy the green merchandise. The promotion starts in early March, and no financial details from the three teams’ deals have been released. The Celtics start things off on March 12th against the Denver Nuggets. They are still working on finding a partner to help them promote the deal. The Bulls take the court in green on March 18th against the Miami Heat, and they will be teaming with Miller Brewing Company. Miller will be providing the first 10,000 fans with T-shirts to match the jerseys. A local Irish dance group, the Trinity Irish Dancers, will be performing at halftime, and the Bulls are working on other Irish entertainment. The Knicks face the Detroit Pistons. They will be teamed with Tourism Ireland. The tourism group will be promoting trips to Ireland, particularly when the Ryder Cup is there, which will be played from September 22nd through the 24th. They will also be featuring other contests and giveaways that fans can enjoy. These three teams have also inked deals to don the green in 2007 as well. For the Knicks, the green jerseys are a part of a larger ethnic marketing strategy. They have already joined forces with Alliance Life Insurance Company of New York for a Latino night and an Asian night. Coca Cola will soon sponsor a Latino night at Madison Square Garden as well. I personally think the green jerseys are a great marketing strategy. Any time you can make money and promote diversity at the same time is a good call. The NBA has a great chance to become more diverse and diversity will only lead to a wider fan base and better image for the league.
Volume 8 Issue 42 Page 4
ESPN tries to bolster mobile unit
I’m writing in response to the article which discusses how ESPN is trying to do a better job of selling its new mobile phone unit. This phone is special because it allows subscribers to have instant access to sports scores, events, and analysis, even streaming videos through their mobile phone. While this is an exciting idea, ESPN has had to drop its price of this unit from $399 to $199 and the subscriber price from $65 to $35, because not enough people have subscribed. I really think this is a neat phone, but I don’t blame people for not wanting to pay that much money for a phone with these capabilities. After all, I could spend so much less money simply calling a friend to have him give me a sports update. I think that with the internet being such a hot commodity nowadays many companies have overestimated the popularity of items that provide instant information especially in the sports world. While sports fans definitely love instant information, economically ESPN, in this case, just needed to be a little more realistic. I finally think that they have learned their lesson and will be a lot more successful from here on out with this neat mobile sports phone unit. Perhaps someday I’ll also invest in this cool idea when it drops even further in price.
“NLL pursues expansion”
Volume 8 Issue 42 PG 18
Over the past five years the National Lacrosse League has completely revamped its look in hopes of attracting larger audiences, and it worked. The NLL is now planning on expanding through among others, owners of NHL teams. The NLL which currently has eleven teams, six of which have owners who also have professional hockey teams, plans to work on marketing franchises to more of these owners and facilities. Not just because it takes less than one hour to transform the ice of a hockey game into the turf for a lacrosse game it is very easy to hold both events in one day, but because this type of owner has deep pockets to get a lacrosse team up and running. Not to mention when the owner is in charge of both teams it is easier to schedule the coinciding games, and sharing a facility is very easy being that there are only eight home games in the lacrosse league.
Kroenke Sports Enterprises operates the Pepsi Center in Denver and owns the Nuggets (NBA), Avalanche (NHL), and the Mammoth (NLL) among other things. A better owner could not exist, their involvement in all the teams playing in the same venue and the venue itself is a great and successful example of how the teams can help each other out. Owning the building can help in tying in parking, concessions, novelties and making the different aspects affordable; while taking part in the operations of other teams can help in getting groups to buy tickets, rights to suites and the advertisements on the dasher boards.
Recently Reebok became the official uniform of the NLL, a five year, multi-million dollar agreement. The deal is expected to help the growth of the sport tremendously while marketing to the fans of both sports is a bit easier, lacrosse is a very reasonably priced event to attend, with tickets averaging $22 and peaking at $45 each. Also the players who average a salary of $12,000 each are involved in community functions, encouraged to interact with the fans, and hold autograph sessions.
From the article it seems that the strategy of marketing NLL teams to owners of other professional sports teams could be a huge success. There are so many perks and opportunities to increase fans to both sports that it seems like if purchasing a team is possible, it will most likely increase revenue in the arena and excitement to the cities sports fans. With Reebok signing onto the sport it will get more recognition and hopefully thrive.
Matt Valentine
Volume 8 Issue 42 Page 24
Arena use easy switch between hockey and indoor lacrosse to boost concession revenue
Arenas around the country that host both hockey games and also indoor lacrosse games share many similarities. They do the switchover between games without losing much revenue in the process. Man National Lacrosse League teams, 11 in all, play in hockey facilities. Compared to the amount of time and effort its takes for a venue to change from hockey to basketball, changing over for a lacrosse game reduces labor costs, and several arenas often schedules same day hockey lacrosse double headers, freeing up more prime dates for hockey, said Jim Jennings NLL commissioner. He also mentioned that NLL teams play an average of eight regular season home games compared to 40 plus for hockey. In addition to cost savings from setting up for lacrosse events, many franchises can save up an additional $500,000 annually by utilizing the same staffs to work both teams and eliminating the need to lease office space. One thing that I found very interesting about Jennings comments was how blunt he was about the audience he is trying to appeal to. He said, “We get a lot of young adults, age 21 – 28, and going out on dates. We also get groups of guys and girls, and the younger demographic enhances beer sales. This was just the case at the Air Canada center in Toronto, home to the NLL Rock the past five years. The team has been attracting as lot of young fans from the suburbs compared to the more old school hockey fans. The have higher beer sales, equal to if not more than what they sell at Maple Leafs games. The Philadelphia Wings host a tailgate party which I have attended many times right outside the Wachovia Center two hours before each home game. They title it the “Broad Street Bash” and it always generates a lot of revenue for the food and beverage provider Aramark. The Victors Club bar located within the complex also always offers all you can eat and drink special, which are always key when you got to a Wings game. I feel that the sport of lacrosse is about to blow up across America, and I feel that the country is sure to see how much fun it will be.
"Sponsors back USA Basketball"
Volume 8 issue 42 front page
This article talks about the USA basketball program and thier campaign for marketing deals for the 2008 Beijing games. Right now the team reportedly has reached agreements with Gatorade, Nike, and McDonalds for around 16 million dollars in sponsorship revenue for three years. This is an effort to improve the performance and perception of the USA men’s basketball team. Espically after their less than amazing performance in the last games. Instead of sponsors getting the usual 17 day advertising buy during the Olympics, the deal will allow these companies to receive global activation opportunities that coincide with the three year commitments USA Basketball is seeking from players.
Obviouly something wasn't quite working right so I think it was smart to try and change things up a bit. This new structure should help both sides out. The past few showings of the US olympic team have been major dissappointments, an because of that many big name players refuse to associate with it. But right now things seem to be turning around they hired legendary college coach Mike Krzyzewski. And now some All-star players such as Lebron James and Kobe Bryant have said they will play and many other top stars are willing to play too. It's rumored that Shaquille O’Neal may even play. I think sponsors will make out on this deal because i think more people are going to follow this year’s games because of the buzz already going around. This team looks refreshed and ready to make a statement.
Stern, NBA make doing well by doing good contagious
Brandon Schmitt
This article demonstrates how the David Stern, the NBA’s commissioner, believes the league should care more about the needs of the wider world. Just this last October, Stern announced the league’s new $100 million charity initiative. The writer discusses how he thinks all major sport league should do the same. I feel the same way because sports are a huge part of our industry and can generate large profits for charity organizations. The article states how the PGA Tour has past the billion-dollar mark from its charitable contributions from its tournaments. Professional athletes also made a huge impact with the tsunami and Hurricane Katrina relieves. These athletes are role models for kids, and Stern is trying to utilize their ability to positively affect them. With enough effort, sports can change so many things in our lives. They can raise an infinite amount of resources that can support people’s needs and help build a better future.
feb 27- march 5 volume 8 issue 42 Sponsors Back USA Basketball
The USA basketball team has received some known sponsors to sponsor them in the 2008 summer olympic games. Sponsors like McDonalds, Nike, State Farm Insurance, and Gatorade will sponsor the team for 3 years. They all have made up a deal that could bring in 16 million dollars over 3 years. The USA basketball team slipped last olympics and only pulled a bronze medal. Now alot of very good basketball players do not want to play for team America. This Olympics though, we brought in many players that were telling reporters that they just didn't want to be a part of the team again or even at highly respected coach, which is coach K from Duke university. Bringing him in has opened alot of talented NBA players to actually give the team a try. Before they brought coach K in, alot of players had their doubts about playing on the team. I believe that all the team needs is a gold medal in 2008, to show players with no interest that America produces the best athletes in the world like we are used to doing. I remember the first team we ever took to the Olympics, that were all players from the NBA and not from random colleges. That team never lost and won the gold. If we could just win the the next olympics, we would win gold that year, then the next time that we have to pick a team for the Olympics, that alot of well known good players would want to play and wouldn't turn down the chance like alot of great players are doing this time around. I just think we need one big year and then everything will be back to normal with the USA basketball team.
Volume 8 issue 42 page 4
“ESPN tires to bolster mobile unit”
This article is about ESPN executives changing elements of the new ESPN mobile phone. After a rough start, executives are worried about there product. ESPN has a new round of advertising creative set to debut in April. Although sells are not where they wanted them to be, they still feel very strong about the content they are now offering.
After the rough start, executives are still happy with the progress. They are now concerned about the sells and marketing aspect. With that said they have already dropped the price of the phone from $399 to $199, and new monthly plan of $39.99, down from $64.99.Keep in mind that this mobile phone is targeted mostly for men aging from 18 to 45. ESPN expects to exceed 250,000 subscribers by the end of 2006. This means Mobile ESPN would not become profitable until the 2010.
I think this is a great idea for ESPN to open their doors a little bit and offer more than just a TV station. I think it is great for sports fans of all cultures. But, I do not like the pricing of the plans they give. I think the price is too high to only get a minimal amount of talk minutes. They are asking the customer to pay 39.99 a month for only 100 minutes. They only give free nights and weekends for the 64.99 plan, but you still only get 450 minutes. I just think that is a bit ridiculous for the price customers are going to pay.
Gary Mader HPED 481 03-09-06 BLOG 5
Sponsors back USA Basketball
vol 8 issue 42 pg 1&7
Recently, the USA Basketball program has made deals with and announced their sponsors for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Many sponsors jumped at the chance to sponsor the games and be able to advertise on the global level. The main companies involved with the event are Mcdonald’s, Nike, State Farm Insurance and Gatorade. The USA basketball program made the deals in an attempt to improve the worldwide image and performance of team USA. For a very long time, team USA dominated the Olympics and once earned the name “Dream Team” but in recent years they have been getting beat by other countries. Their goal for the 2008 games is to re-establish their dominance and help change the way American athletes are regarded. In an interview, team managing director Jerry Colangelo stated “We have an opportunity to not just put together a successful team but to look at is as a platform on an international stage regarding the perception of us as Americans and athletes.” I think this is a great idea and is needed to boost the team’s reputation. The 2008 games are going to have more hype and hopefully more people will watch to cheer on their country. The 4 main sponsors shelled out $4 million a piece because they know it is a great opportunity for them.
Sponsors back USA Basketball
"Deals could bring $16M over 3 years"
Volume 8 issue 42 page 7
McDonald’s, Nike, Gatorade, and State Farm insurance have agreed to be part of sponsoring the USA Basketball team for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. This will bring in around $16 million over the next three years. After taking bronze in the last Olympics Jerry Colangelo is trying to put together a new and improved team to represent the USA. Instead of sponsors getting a 17 day advertising buy while the Olympics games are being played they will be getting global activation opportunities over the next three years. Jerry Colangelo is trying to get more sponsors but wouldn’t say who he is pursuing. Building a better perception to the USA Olympic team as well as hopefully a more successful team could turn the program around and generate new sponsors. Not all terms were confirmed but it has been said that about $4 million as came from each of the four sponsors thus far.
There are plans of a few exhibition games in China and in Korea before heading to the Olympics these dates have not been set as of yet. Jerry Colangelo has said that ESPN are trying to get the rights to these games also the USA team is trying to practice in U.S military bases world wide. In 1992 the first “dream team” that featured stars likes Jordan, bird, and Magic Johnson have produced the most sponsorship dollars for one Olympic team, though how much was never released. There was a brand new position opened for Jerry Colangelo who was appointed last April to direct the new approach to winning the gold medal in the next Olympics. In October Duke’s head coach Mike Krzyzewski accepted the head coaching job for the 2008 Olympic team. Since Jerry Colangelo as taken over there have been a lot of players interested in playing in the up coming Olympics.
Volume 8 Issue 42
The USA Basketball program has made deals with and announced their sponsors for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Ther were a number of sponsors that jumped at the opportunity to sponsor the games and get the advertisement desired. Some of the major organizations that were on the list were Nike, State Farm Insurance and Gatorade. For a very long time, team USA dominated the Olympics and once earned the name “Dream Team” but as of late the teams being sent to the games have not been fairing so well. The USA team would like to get their swagger back and establish themselves as the team to beat again. The team better show up to play seeing how the sponsors each put up 4 million to sponsor the team and it will be important to gain the support from fans that the previous teams in the past used to generate.
Volume 8 Issue 42
The USA Basketball program has made deals with and announced their sponsors for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Ther were a number of sponsors that jumped at the opportunity to sponsor the games and get the advertisement desired. Some of the major organizations that were on the list were Nike, State Farm Insurance and Gatorade. For a very long time, team USA dominated the Olympics and once earned the name “Dream Team” but as of late the teams being sent to the games have not been fairing so well. The USA team would like to get their swagger back and establish themselves as the team to beat again. The team better show up to play seeing how the sponsors each put up 4 million to sponsor the team and it will be important to gain the support from fans that the previous teams in the past used to generate.
Volume 8 Issue 42
The USA Basketball program has made deals with and announced their sponsors for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Ther were a number of sponsors that jumped at the opportunity to sponsor the games and get the advertisement desired. Some of the major organizations that were on the list were Nike, State Farm Insurance and Gatorade. For a very long time, team USA dominated the Olympics and once earned the name “Dream Team” but as of late the teams being sent to the games have not been fairing so well. The USA team would like to get their swagger back and establish themselves as the team to beat again. The team better show up to play seeing how the sponsors each put up 4 million to sponsor the team and it will be important to gain the support from fans that the previous teams in the past used to generate.
Volume 8 Issue 42
The USA Basketball program has made deals with and announced their sponsors for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Ther were a number of sponsors that jumped at the opportunity to sponsor the games and get the advertisement desired. Some of the major organizations that were on the list were Nike, State Farm Insurance and Gatorade. For a very long time, team USA dominated the Olympics and once earned the name “Dream Team” but as of late the teams being sent to the games have not been fairing so well. The USA team would like to get their swagger back and establish themselves as the team to beat again. The team better show up to play seeing how the sponsors each put up 4 million to sponsor the team and it will be important to gain the support from fans that the previous teams in the past used to generate.
Volume 8 Issue 42
The USA Basketball program has made deals with and announced their sponsors for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Ther were a number of sponsors that jumped at the opportunity to sponsor the games and get the advertisement desired. Some of the major organizations that were on the list were Nike, State Farm Insurance and Gatorade. For a very long time, team USA dominated the Olympics and once earned the name “Dream Team” but as of late the teams being sent to the games have not been fairing so well. The USA team would like to get their swagger back and establish themselves as the team to beat again. The team better show up to play seeing how the sponsors each put up 4 million to sponsor the team and it will be important to gain the support from fans that the previous teams in the past used to generate.
SEC continues to press retro effort
vol8 issue43 pg8
SEC Men’s Basketball Conference will be getting out the throwbacks for the SEC tournament in Nashville. The SEC is in there eighth decade as a basketball conference and officials thought this would be a good way to honor that accomplishment. Throwback Week, is what they are calling it, is planned to bring back 400 throwback jerseys to all the SEC conference teams. Schools campus bookstores and at secstore.com have been selling the jerseys at $59 each. The SEC receives 2 percent and each of the school receives 8 percent. That leaves the schools to receive the rest of the money. That means that the eight SEC schools could receive up to $32,000 for the jersey sales. Other schools have done similar things, and all of them received very high profits from it. Many bookstores were sold out in days. I think that this is a very good thing to do. It gives the students and fans a new look and something different and unique. It even gives the SEC Conference a different image and that means that people and companies are going to want in one this because people are going to do wanting these one in a kind jerseys and it’s a perfect opportunity to get your name and corporation out there to the public.
Jacob White
NBA’s Chicago predraft camp going to Disney
Volume 8 Issue 43 Page 4
March 6-12, 2006
The NBA’s predraft camp is moving from Chicago to Disneyworld in Orlando, Florida. Since 1982, the weeklong camp has taken place in early June in Chicago. It attracts team and league officials who come to evaluate talent and talk about free agency and other league gossip. The camp is designed for potential NBA draft picks to showcase their talent, but recently more and more top picks have chosen to skip the camp and have private workouts for individual teams. While Chicago was chosen for the camp because it is located in the central United States, the hope is that moving the camp to Disney will attract more of those top picks. This year the camp is taking place from June 6th to June 10th. ESPNU will be airing 6 hours of coverage from the camp, and NBA-TV will be reporting from Disney as well. Both networks covered the event last year, but they are planning to change the programming this year. ESPNU plans to implement more live game coverage coupled with interviews with talent scouts and general managers. The relocation is for 2006 with an option for more years. The Disney Wide World of Sports complex is a more modern facility than Chicago’s Moody Bible Institute’s gym. The complex features medical facilities on site and hotels close by. The NBA wants to capitalize on the state of the art facilities and continue to better their relationship with ESPN, ABC and Disney. I think from a marketing standpoint, the relocation is better for the NBA because they can continue to improve their relationship with ESPN, ABC and Disney. A bigger relationship with those companies will mean more money for the NBA. However, as far as attracting the top picks that would normally skip the camp, I don’t know if it will work. One or two of those potential no shows may be influenced by the camp being in Disney, but for the most part, I think that those who plan on skipping are going to skip regardless of where the camp is held. Any time you can move to a complex with more modern facilities, it is a plus for your organization. The players that do come are going to enjoy the camp more, and possibly influence other players in future years to come by telling them about their experience at the camp. All in all it is a good move for the NBA because they will make money, make the potential draft picks happier, and possibly attract a few more of those big names to participate in the camp. ESPNU’s coverage will also provide more notoriety for the league which is always a good thing.
Nyeemah Shubert-Beck
Staying on the Guard
Volume 8,Issue 43,pg 20
How do we protect our people? In the city of Brotherly Love, Philadelphia have become an entitiy within the security aspect. Philly's great sport complex, which contains two arenas and two stadiums, could be terrist targets. The sercurity manangers, along with officials from city emergency services dept. and homeland sercurity have joined together to discuss this issue for almost a full day. The decision came about because of the Army Navy games that have been housed in the Lincoln Financial Field for the past three years and soon to be moving into the philadelphia area for the next four years.
The Facilities now have guard dogs that not only sniff on the premisses of the arena and/or stadium but that also sniff out on the sides walks before, during and after the games. "We decided to look beyond the gates to see whats coming at us...we don't think the NFL deals with that,"says Scott Jenkins, Eagles Vice President for stadium operations/facilites.He didn't reveal that pricing for the working of the dogs.
Issue 43 Vol.8 pg.29
"NBA's 'silent game' exciting in arena, but feels flat on television"
This article discussed how on February 26 the NBA had a "silent game” during the Orlando Magic and Houston Rockets game. During a "silent game' which there is to be no music during play and that there were no TV announcers. This enabled the crowd at the arena to be able to witness more things during the game. One benefit was that spectators could hear the players and officials communicate better on the court. Another reason the silent game was better for spectators in the arena was that when the team was doing very well or hit a big shot the crowd was louder. There was also a pep band and an organist to pump up the crowd during the right moments. But like every good thing there is always something that isn’t so great to go along with it. In the case of the “silent game” these were the problems… for the fans at home with no announcers some of the excitement was lost. NBA TV analyst Gail Goodrich stated that with no announcers, "What I think you miss would be the real excitement of a great play." A second problem with the game was that is was lacking instant replay. I agree with Joel Glass, director of communication, when he said, "it gave fans a unique entertainment package." But I don’t know if unique really means good. I think on one hand the idea was a neat one, because it was a different perspective, but I don’t think that I would like to have every game be a silent game. Somehow I feel like I would be missing out.
Agents keep faith, even as original deadline passes
Volume 8, issue 43, page 36
With time running out for NFL teams and potentially the biggest cut of NFL players in the history of the league an extension was granted for three days. The owners and the player association could not come to agreement of terms in there collective bargaining agreement and if the extension was not granted teams would not only have to cut starters but also their important players that they wouldn’t cut. This would change the face of the league since teams wouldn’t be able to afford to pick up free agents. According to Tom Condon only about a third of the teams would be to participate in free agency in a meaningful way, in a normal year about seventy five percent would participate. Despite the problem in the meetings agents like Drew Rosenhaus, Ben Dogra, were very optimistic.
Even though the contract wouldn’t expire until after the 2007 season, the 2006 season would be the last year with a salary cap and if there was agreement made by the two sides the players association would not agree to another salary cap contract. Which 2007 would be the first non salary cap season and could turn into a free agency like baseball, and owners could spend as much as they wanted on players this wouldn’t be good for the small market teams who wouldn’t be able to compete with the big market teams. Before the high market players could cash in on an uncapped year the would have to be signed in a hard pressed year, and if there was no extension bonuses which is basically guaranteed money would be harder to come by since it would hit teams salary cap the minute they were earned. In 2005 singing bonuses would be incorporated over a five year span, but in 2006 would be over four years which is the shortest it’s been since the salary cap was enforced. Steinberg was one of many agents to predict a last minute agreement between the two sides.
Volume 8 Issue 43 March 6-12
One more look: U.S. Open to be 1st Slam to use replay
The U.S Open will use an instant replay system in this years Open. The replay system is supposed to help official get the right call. I think it's a great idea for tennis in general. You always see at least one bad call during a match which changes the game. I think not only the players will appreciate but also the fans. The players get to challenge on-court rulings, just like in the NFL. Many fans like the replay system in the NFL. Another outcome from this is selling sponsorships to the technology. I think that this could not bring in more fans, but the ones who were iffy about tennis to watch it more. The players get 2 challenges per set and one during the tie break, so there is some strategy involved, when to challenge and when not too. Making it more exciting for the fan and viewer. This needed to be done in tennis for sometime now. I think they finally realized how important it was to get the right call. It's a win, win situation for everyone involved in the sport.
NBA’s Chicago predraft camp going to Disney
Volume 8, Issue 43, Page 4
In this article it stated that the NBA predraft camp is going to be moved to the Disney sports complex this June. The camp was held in Chicago since 1992 for the main reason that is is located in the center of the nation. Also, the league has found that many of the top prospects are skipping the camp to work out with teams on their own. The Disney complex is more updated than the complex in Chicago so there is better equipment so players can perform at the top level.
In my opinion, I think that this could be good and a little bit of the plan to be bad. I think that the movement to a better facility is benefiting the players better because there is an on – site training and medical facilities. In Orlando Florida, there are more tourist there and this will give the fans a better chance to meet the players. Also, ESPNU is going to air six hours of the camp live, from game coverage to press conferences with scouts and GM’s. One bad thing that I can find to this plan is that it is on the eastern side of the nation, and some players may find it difficult to make the trip so scouts and whoever cannot see their talent. But, in my opinion I believe that holding the camp in Orlando will make the camp a more social event with more tourists there to see the games.
"SEC continues to press retro effort" Volume 8 issue 43 page 9
This article is about the SEC's plan to sell retro basketball jerseys during tournament week to honor the conferences 8th decade of basketball. The SEC teams wore the jerseys during throwback week during teh week of Feb 18-26. They will also wear them during teh tournament week when they will be on sale at the Gaylord Center. They are also available on secstore.com and in some bookstores. Adult jerseys will sell for $59 each and childs will be going for $49. During the football season , Nike schools Miami, Virginia Tech, Oregan and Florida wore retro jerseys and they sold out almost immediately once they went on sale. There will also be a kickback to the schools for the sales. They will recieve 8 percent which could mean as much as $32,000 for a school.
I think this is a great idea for schools and companys. It is a good way to celebrate 80 years in the league by honoring past teams with their jerseys, plus it will bring in money for both sides. When the NBA, NFL, and MLB started bringing out retro jerseys a few years ago I didn't know what to expect, but thats all you see these days on the streets. Buying retro jerseys has become a new style in bigger cities and can be seen being worn by most young adults. I think this will be a great idea for the companys and schools involved.
"Federer nears lifetime deal with Wilson" volume 8 issue 43 page 3
I’m writing in response to the article which talks about Roger Federer signing a lifetime racket deal with Wilson. Wilson would pay Federer two million dollars a year for life (serving as an ambassador after he retires) in exchange for Federer agreeing to use Wilson rackets for life and match up with Wilson in the future for Wilson marketing campaigns. To me, this deal seems like a great idea for both Wilson and Roger Federer. On Wilson’s side they get the services of Roger Federer for the rest of is life as promoter of Wilson’s rackets. Federer is not only one of the best male tennis players in the country but he is also still rather young, which will allow for many more wins in the future for Federer which would further promote Wilson’s rackets. In addition Federer might be able to encourage other future tennis stars to also use Wilson rackets. For Federer this also makes a great deal of sense. Who in their right mind would ever pass up a chance at two million dollars of guaranteed money for the REST of his life. While there is a chance that Federer could earn more money by negotiating a shorter deal and then banking on future success for a larger deal, having two million guaranteed even after his retirement is about as comfortable of a future plan as one can get. This also protects Federer’s future in case he were to get injured or have his play drop off drastically. I wish all of us could be so lucky to have a two million dollar retirement plan!
Volume 8 Issue 43 March 6-12
One more look: U.S. Open to be 1st Slam to use replay
The U.S. Open is going to be using instant replay and I for one think this is a great idea. Off all sports I feel that tennis is the easiest and most simplistic way to employ instant replay. Looking at a replay of an obscure angle to see if a player keeps two feet inbounds is much harder to interpret than whether a clearly visible ball is inbounds or out of bounds. When I am watching tennis I often wonder how a judge can tell whether a ball is in or out. Now whenever there is a tough or questionable call instant replay can be used to ensure accuracy, and to eliminate outbursts from players feeling they are on the wrong end of a call.
There is no doubt in my mind that tennis can only benefit from instant replay. Ruling a ball in or out is almost impossible to get wrong when looking at a video and its use can help to eliminate factors other than the two competitors. Instant replay has been in some sports for a while now, hockey for example, and it is a matter of time until it seems odd when a sport does not use instant replay in some form.
“Where the Teens Are”
Brandon Schmitt
This article is discussing the important role teens play in today’s society. Most of it is directed at their habits and how they can be reached. Throughout the article, it shows how much today’s teens are on the internet and watching TV. It goes on about all the different opportunities they have with blogs and other online sites, like MySpace and Facebook, where they can display their profiles and meet new people. The article shares a good point when it states how kids tend to look at the internet for information about sports. Marketers are no longer limited to schools in order to reach kids. They can get their attention on the internet, where people roam free and only pay attention to their interests.
It is no doubt that teens are fixated on sports. Having the ability to reach them whenever necessary is a big part of sports marketing. They account for much of the industry and it is important to keep them that way, not only for the present but for the future as well. If they remain big sports fans, it is likely that their children will be the same.
Issue 43 vol 8 pg 29
" NBA silent game exciting in arena, but feels flat on TV".
This article talks about how on Feb. 26 the houston rockets took on the Orlando magic in a silent game. This means that there was no music in the arena and also no tv announcers. This allowed fans in the stands to feel closer to the players and more into the game, but left fans at home bored and uninterested. I think that this is a good idea to do every once and a while but would turn fans away if it was done all of the time.
Gary Mader HPED 481 03-16-06 BLOG 6
Volume 8 Issue 43 March 6-12
One more look: U.S. Open to be 1st Slam to use replay
I think having an instant replay in tennis is a very good idea. There has always been problems in tennis with whether or not the right call was made. This goes all the way back to the days of John McEnroe and him yelling and cursing out the line judges. They have judges on every line that is in play on the court and even tried using an electronic sensor that would beep if the ball was out of bounds. But players are still having problems with some of the calls the judges are making.
Recently, several sports associations have implemented the instant replay for officials to use in making calls. The NFL gives coaches the ability to challenge a play and the referee will take time out to go and review the play and make the proper call. The NBA uses instant replay sometimes to determine how much time should be on the shot and game clocks and to see if a player got a shot off in time. Personally, I think it is a good idea because sometimes the calls the referees make can drastically change the outcome of a game. There are strict rules and everything should be done to make sure they are followed. But I understand that commissioners believe that people may abuse the use of instant replay and it might affect the quality of games. They like to keep things traditional because the history or sport is so precious. After all, back in the day they would rely on a wristwatch to keep time and a air horn for the buzzer. But I feel that with the technology we use such as multiple high-def camera angles, we must use instant replay. We should use all of our technology to make sure the game is fair and officiated correctly.
In tennis’ case, I think having instant replay is a great idea, but I think they might face problems with players abusing their right to it. If they challenge every play they think has a chance of being wrong just for the sake of it then that is definitely not a good thing. It will slow down the pace and excitement of the match. There should be rules on challenging and players should only be allotted a certain amount per game.
Winning dollars, if not hearts
Volume 8 Issue 43, page 1
Despite the owner’s and managers of some of the MLB clubs downing the WBC, this tourney is turning out to be big after all. WBC is already an out-of-the-box smash. Ticket sales have already exceeded 800,000, not including the games being held at Phoenix.
The owner’s and managers of some clubs do not like the idea because injuries may occur. But so much more good comes out of this than bad. Despite the negativity about these games, I feel this is really good for baseball, organizations, and sponsors. Sales are up more than regular spring training. Player’s that are in MLB are off to a hot start, and getting games under there belt that actually mean something. The sponsors for these games are hitting big also. Nearly all of MLB’s corporate sponsors are making WBC investments. TV coverage can bee seen in over 200 countries. WBC merchandise is also becoming a hot commodity.
For all these reasons, I can not see how this could be bad. As a fan of the game, I think this is a great idea. For the league and sponsors, this can generate a lot of money. But as an owner, I can see what they are worried about. If one of there star players goes down because of a injury, ticket sales will go down because fans will not want to go watch a game without their star player hurt. Also, with that player being injured, it may cost the team from making it to the post season.
Matt Valentine
Volume 8 Issue 43 pg 20
Staying on guard- Mock Disaster
The city of Philadelphia is unique in that they have a complex just south of center city which encompasses all of our major sports teams as well as a few minor league affiliates. Because of this overload of sports teams and events centers, they know that it could p[possibly be a target for a terrorist attack. One morning in mid December, Official from the Phillies, Flyer, Eagles, and Sixers teamed up with officials from the governments of homeland security to discuss how they would react to a terrorist attack. They planned what they would do in the case of an attack threat during a large scale game like an Eagles game, and also what they would do during a smaller event in a facility like the spectrum. They also planned what they would do if multiple events were going on at the same time, which would probably be the most serious of all attacks. Mike Hassan of Comcast spectator mentioned that Lincoln financial field is prepared for such an attack and know how serious one could be. He feels confident about the Link because it has hosted the Army-Navy game for the past three years. They have practiced the use of bomb sniffing dogs and are up to the challenge in case of an emergency. I feel that the city is smart in practicing these types of drills in a complex like Philadelphia has. We are unlike many others that do not have all of the teams play in the same general area, so I believe drills like this a very important to the city and the fans of Philadelphia.
Volume 8 Issue 43 ESPN Radio's NYC station gets boost from Smith...Page 9
espn might finally have found a break out star. Stephen Smith has shown improvements in show ratings in Dallas and Los Angeles in the fall Arbitron ratings book. In New York, WEPN's Stephen Smith drew a rating of 2.3 among men 24-54 for his noon -2 shift. Almost double the 1.2 rating ESPN station earned a year ago. Smith began his show in April 2005 is the stations most popular host especially resonating among African Americans. He is bringing a lot of new people to this format. In Dallas ESPN grew by up to 44 percent reaching a share of 3.6 shares.
I think that this is good for ESPN, if Stephen Smith can bring up ratings than he is an asset to the show and he is drawing more attention to people to watch ESPN. It is always good to watch someone who knows what he is talking about on ESPN.
Volume 8 Issue 43 pg 6
Jockeys confront harsh reality, empty coffers
Sometimes companies and associations make changes to their leaders to only expect the best outcome that could be possible. In the situation of the Jockeys Guild Wayne Gertmenian, ex professor from Pepperdine University was appointed to run the Jockeys’ Guild in 2001, the organization that represents about 1,200 professional racehorse jockeys nation wide, and had about five million dollars in assets. In a conference call to Gertmenian before being fired he assured the guild’s senators “you have never been in better shape [financially] then you are today. We have a three million dollar war chest”. It was found that there was no such chest and over the entire guild had $6,000 in the bank and was $600,000 in the red. Also bouncing 280 checks, including health insurance reserves and jockey members’ savings had been sold. After firing Gertmenian sixty jockeys gathered to vote on things such as the member fee, disability benefits, and mount fees. The belief of jockeys with in the guild is that they have been through a lot and it is time to rebuild right now.
I picked this article because this is an outstanding situation in which an associations had so much belief in one personal that it completely torn it apart even after some personal within made attempts to come forth but it led to there extinction with the guild. I was not exactly up to date with the Jockeys’ Guild so I looked up this association on line www.jockeysguild.com, what I found is the entire website is in the process of being rebuilt and the content that was on this page was all directed toward the rebuilding of the guild as of February 27th and 28th at an assembly held in Dallas, Texas. The also went into saying that there previous web page has changed due to the need to switch carriers because a monetary aspect. Dr Gertmenian and partners have done a bad deed within the sports world but this is just proof to all that we as up coming sports marketers the need to know what is going on in our chosen facility, if we are to let the little things slip then disaster is set for a time closely in the future.
'SEC continues to press retro effor'
Volume 8 Issue 43
This article mainly discussed how the SEC conference was preparing to sell retro jerseys during the conference tournament week. This was to honor the conferences 8th decade of existence. Teams will wear these jerseys during the tournament week and will be able to be purchased where the tournament is being held at the Gaylord Center. These jerseys were previously worn this season so fans got a chance to see what they already looked like. The marketing effort will also extend to internet sales at www.secstore.com. This effort was also tried in the football during the fall and the retro jerseys were immediately sold out upon arrival in stores. What is good is that the schools benefit because they recieve a kickback of 8% of the profit. I think this is a step in the right direction because it was a success when other major leagues such as the MLB and NBA promoted the retro jerseyes with a success. I think this is a great idea and can positively impact both the companies and the schools so hopefully it will continue in the future and represent the past as well as support for the schools.
Volume 8 Issue 44 page 7
"Red Sox seek MLB's largest radio rights deal"
This article talks about the Boson Red Sox seeking a new twelve million to fifteen million a year radio right deal with the Major League baseball. Boston is asking for a twenty to twenty-five percent increase over their current ten million dollars a year deal.
The Red Sox's chief operating officer Mike Dee says that they have a variety of different options witha radio deal. He said that they expect to have a deal by the end of March and by adding a radio station would benefit the team. Dee also said signal strength, financial condition, local commitment and the sstation's fit with baseball would join cold cash as major factors in the team decision. The Sox also have a lot of broqadcasting experience.
I think this will be good for their organization. On the other hand i dont think that it will be good for all Major League Baseball teams such as the pirates because the pirates havent been good since the early ninety's.
"Red Bull energizes MLS with team purchase"
Vol. 8 Issue 44 Page 3
This article is about how Anschutz Enertainment Group(AEG)sold its MetroStars Major League Soccer team to the Austria based Red Bull engery drink. AEG owns 4 of the 12 teams in the MLS. So far, Anschutz has been the "backbone" for the league but its not out of desire; its more the necessity. It really wasn't their desicion to sell the MetroStars as much as it was the leagues. It is likely that Red Bull paid at least $30 million for the MetroStars which includes the naming rights and 50% ownership of the new stadium in Harrison, NJ. Founder of Red Bull, Dietrich Mateschitz said that they didn't just want to be a sponsor but also take full responsibility for a team by becoming an owner.
Red Bull also owns 2 Formula One racig teams and an Austrian soccer club.
AEG also put 2 other teams on the market in the past year, the D.C. United and the Houston Dynamo. Hunt Sports are invested in 3 of the MLS teams also.
I think it was a very smart move by Red Bull to buy the MetroStars. The league is growing and diversifying in many ways. Not only was it a good business move, but also a huge sponorship increase. Red Bull is already popular within the Unites States, but with other competitors, this could help keep them above the rest.
Volume 8 issue 44
"Don't let insane idea of referee conspiracy tarnish March Madness"
This article is about referee's showing favoritism towards Duke and Gonzaga in mens college basketball. It talks about how all year, and teh last couple of years for Duke, people have complained that they get all the calls in clutch situations.
I liked how the guy who wrote this article defended these teams cause i feel the same whay he does. Duke hasn't averaged 25 plus wins for teh last few years just because they get all the calls. Gonzaga hasn't dominated their conference because of getting the calls either. Duke has dominated because they have the best coach in college. He teaches his kids how to play in crunch time and how to handle those situations and that is why they get the calls because they deserve them more than not. Gonzaga has dominated their conference because it is a weak conference and they aslo have a very good coach. He has built the program up in teh last five or so years to a contender. It's not coincidence that they are in the sweet sixteen again this year, they are just flat out good.
This article does give a few reasons why a referee may sway one way or another and i agree with that too. I don't think they cheat but they are human and could show favoritism. I was able to see Duke in person for two games at the tournament the year they won the National Championship and i witnessed how Coach K can sway a referee. He works the ref's all game and picks out when he pressures them for a call, and it is usually during crunch time he presses for a call. BY picking and choosing points in a game to stress a call, he gets the ref to watch a certain thing that is in Dukes favor, like an offensive pushoff or illegal screen.
I used to hate Duke with a passion, but now i root for them all the time because after watching them play a few games i have gained a lot of respect for their system and the way Coach K coaches and acts off the court. I also liek Gonzaga's system and coach and root for them usually as the underdog. I'm just sick of people using excuses to take away from a teams success. You don't win 25 plus games a year in divison 1 bball unless you have a very good team.
Vol. 8 Issue 44 Page 3
The article that I read was about Anschutz, an entertainment group that sold its MetroStars Major League Soccer team to Red Bull Energy drink. AEG is the leagues largest investor who owns four out of 12 MLS clubs. Anschutz has been the backbone of the league for 10 years. He said “the ownership was out of necessity.” It was more the leagues decision to sell the MetroStars than theirs. Insiders said that Red Bull could have paid at least $30 million for the MetroStars which includes the naming rights and 50% ownership of the new stadium in Harrison, NJ. Dietrich Mateschitz founder of Red Bull, said not only did they want to be a sponser but also take full responsibility for a team by becoming an owner. Also, the article stated that the sale of Red Bull shows the popularity of the league. I feel that Red Bull did a good thing for them as a business. They had to pay a lot to buy the MetroStars but, so many people know the name and the brand is growing and this will just increase their sales.
Volume 8 issue 44 pg 4
Cingular taking madness mobile
Cingular and CBSSportsline.com have put video and other related news of the NCAA tournament on their wireless phone network on video capable cell phones since cingular is one of the main sponsors of the tournament. There will be daily highlights, analysis, and a bracket challenge made for cell phones. Also sprint has made tournament coverage available to their subscribers. There will not be any highlights available but in the form of news. I feel this is a good move for cingular because for people who are at work and do not have access to TV or internet all day and love to keep up with tournament it’s a great way keep up with results.
Cingular taking madness mobile
Vol.8, issue 44, page 4
This article is about Cingular Wireless and CBS Sportsline.com making a deal to provide NCAA men's basketball tournaments with videos and clips of the games to the Cingular users. It will include daily highlight packages, tournament analysis and a bracket challenge contest specifically designed for wireless devices. CBSsportsline.com will focus more on the close-in and under the basket shots because of the small screens on the phones.
I think that this is a good idea because they will definitely make money off of it because the poeple that are really into march madness will definitely tune in on their phones if possible. People use phones for everything now, why not for March Madness? I think that it will go pretty big because I believe a lot of people will use their phones if that's what's available to them at the moment.
Chargers add Coors Light as beer sponsor
vol. 8 issue 45 page 11
Coors Light is replacing the Miller Brewing company, San Diego Charger's second beer sponsor. Coors will appear in the backdrop of all team press conferences and have team logo rights in the San Diego area. The Charger's are the first team Coors Light has signed with since last September when they renewed a sponsorship with the NFL.
Anheuser-Busch is the top beer sponsor in the NFL. They renewed their deal with the Chargers this month and they retained the exclusive in-stadium signs. The Coors sponsors are replacing the motorola backdrops that are found in the area.
I think it's good that Coors Light is sponsoring the San Diego Chargers because Coors is a big company and everyone knows about it, but with them sponsoring a NFL team they may find that their revenue increases because now people who don't usually see ads. in San Diego may now start drinking more Coors Light. I don't think it's ever bad to sponsor a big team because they will make profit off of it.
Red Bull energizes MLS with team purchase
Volume 8, Issue 44, Page 3
In this article, it stated that Red Bull is purchasing the MetroStars from the Anschutz Entertainment group. I think this is a good move by both of the groups because the AEG did own four teams in the soccer league so that may have been good or bad for them. Red Bull commitment includes the naming rights and fifty percent of the rights to the stadium. I think the energy drink company made a good move because it will give then more of a base for advertising. The company will have two sports were they own teams. They own two formula one teams and now two soccer teams as well. Because Red Bull is in two different markets the company will have different spectators being advertised to.
Volume 8 Issue 44 March 22...Brewers near larger deal with top sponsor Miller Brewing, page 11
Milwaukee Brewers have renewed 95 percent of the club's business sports for upcoming season. They have added many new sponsors for this season also. They are very close in closing a deal with it's largest sponsor Miller Brewing Co. Miiler Brewing Co, the milwaukee brewer, paid 40 million for naming rights of Miller Park, they are signing a seven year agreement that would increase sponsorship. Brewers are also getting local companies for naming rights for the picnic area coming this season. They also expanded their marketing department. The sponsorships include Badger Mutual Insurance, Northwestern Mutual, Goodwill Industries and Ashley Furniture etc. Sponsorship ranges from 25,000 to 800,000 for a major sponsor deal.
This is a great oppurtunity for the Milwaukee Brewers. Having Miller Brewing sponsor them for 40 million can open thier options to do a lot more things for the team and draw in more attention. Attracting more fans to come and watch. It is very important also for the team to have their old sponsors come back, that means they like what the team is doing, and likes working with the organization. I think that it is a good thing.
Volume 8 Issue 45 march 22. Yahoo! tops NBC in Olympic traffic, page 5
Yahoo web page that was devoted to Winter Olympics has drawn more visitors than the offical website NBCOLYMPIC.com. This was despite NBCOlympics.com being able to offer video from the games and being promoted heavily on NBC television coverage.
Yahoo also directed many users from other parts of yahoo to visit the olympics page. The numbers were suprising to Yahoo and provided strong testimonial to company's evolving interst in original content. Yahoo brought in a lot of licensed Video from US Figure Skating Federation and other sources and built up it's Webcast show, SportStream.
I think that Yahoo does a good job to promote it's site. I go to yahoo all the time when I get on the internet. There are so many options to chose from and I can see why people would go there over the official site of NBCOlympics.com. Finding stuff on the Yahoo site is easy and it is very fast in finding information that you need. I would of used Yahoo to access Olympic information if I had to choose.
Red Bull energizes MLS with team purchase
vol 8 issue 44 pg 3
This article is about new ownership in MLS and the multipule ownership by some groups. I think that this is not only a good move by Red Bull, but very inportant for the league. Athough there are many loyal fans to soccer and the MLS in the US, it is still not a top draw like the NFL or MLB. Both sides will benefit from the publicity of the deal, and Red Bull will be able to use its current market to promote its new team and the MLS. The later part of this article disscusses that there are several teams owned by the same ownership groups. This is something that the league wants to change and is heading in that direction. I feel that the reason there is trouble finding new ownership for teams is most groups are not yet sure if the popularity of soccer will last in the US. Many popular American born soccer players, beside for the national team, play outside the US and this can lead many viewers to not watch club teams. After the World Cup, specifically the performance of team USA, there should be a more clear image of where soccer stands in the world of american sports.
Brewers near larger deal with top sponsor Miller Brewing
vol 8 issue 44 page 11
This article is about the major league baseball team the milwaukee brewers and how they've had a losing season up until this year and now Miller Brewing company. They expect to make a lot more money and hopefully bring in a lot more fans with all kinds of promotions and specials they will be running. They are alsohoping that this will encourage the team and finally make them a contender because who knows even when the last time they were even close to winning their divison. I think that miller decided to buy this large 800,000 dollar sponsorship because they paid 40million to name the brewers new ballpark Miller Park. I think this sponsorship will greatly effect both the Milwaukee Brewers and Miller Brewing company because the money going to the Brewers will give them more money so they will be able to run better promotions and specials which in return will cause more fans to come and watch the game. If more fans come to watch the game the players might get more motivation to perform their jobs better and show a little more heart causing the team to win more games which will build team confidence get the Brewers back on track. I think it will also help Miller Brewing company because it will allow them to sell their products for lower prices in the stadium hoping to sell a higher quanitity and hopeful getting the fans to always drink Miller because its the sponsor of their team plus because they drink it all the time at the games and get an aquired taste for it that nothing compares to.
Vol. 8 Issue 44 pg. 3 "Cingular taking Madness mobile"
This article is about how Cingular and CBS SportsLine.com has made an agreement to team up to provide video footage of the NCAA tournament on video capable phones. The staff writer goes on to say that with this agreement for the highlight packages on the cell phones this is the first for the industry. This was a huge step by the industry to be able to have rights for the content they are able to put on the phones. Also another carrier that is giving their subscribers inside access to news and events about the tournament is Sprint, although Sprint is not licensed by the NCAA. Laslty, the phone that will also be doing the same thing is the new model phone employed by ESPN.
I think that this is a good thing for the cell phone industry. Many people have the internet on their phones, so they are more able to keep up with their favorite teams on the road. So this way you will never have to watch the TV for highlights because you can just see them on the phone.
Jeremy Glass
volume 8 issue 44 pg 11 "Chargers add Coors Light as beer sponsor."
The NFL team, the San Diego Chargers have made a deal with Coors light to be it's new beer for the stadium. Anheiser Busch bought out the Miller brewing company for rights at their field. I personally don't care what kind of beer is sponsoring what stadium. No matter what kind of beer that is being sold in stadiums now just needs to go down in price. 6 dollars a cup is ridiculous. I have enough money for like two beers. I do not want bad beer at the stadium either. I do want the high standard of beer if I am going to a game. But I don't want to be paying ridiculous prices either. I know that owners have to make money, but making alot of their profit off of beer is crazy. Notice the amount of beer consumed during one game at any stadium if the seats are mostly filled. They could lower the prices down just a little. The Chargers though bring in a pretty good crowd, and thus make prety good money off of beer each sunday. I guess this is a big step for the Anheiser Busch company to buy out a team that was previously under Miller brewing company's control. They need the reconition as much as they can get it because most of the publicity has been in Miller's way I believe. But all in all this is a nice stadium and a good team for them to be sponsoring.
Mrs. Nyeemah Shubert-Beck
Cingular taking Madness Mobile
Volume8, issue 44 pg4
In this article they are implying that they are giving Cingular Carriers the opportunity to have daily highlights on the games on the go. This is coming from both Cingular and CBS sportsline.com. They have combined to keep their subscribers updated on what's occurring during the men's NCAA's Basketball Tournments games. In this package being offered they will alos provide a tournments analysis, and the first bracket challenge contest specifically designed for wireless devices.
In the same aspect Sprint has team up with some of chicago's producers to create a tournment themed coaches' and analysis shows for its wireless subscribers. The services that they are providing does not include highlight no NCAA licensed content,it acts as a news informer.Because its a service being provided through phone companies the main focus will be more on direct, under the basket shots.
I pick this article because it really shows how technology is truely taking over the world. Its creating to much access to the United States Economy, if you ask! me.
Volume 8, issue 44, pg. 7
Red Sox seek MLB’s largest radio rights deal
This article discusses how the Boston Red Sox are seeking to increase their yearly radio which was around 10-12 million dollars a year to upwards of 12-15 million dollars a year, which would be a record radio deal. This would be a 20-25% increase. If this were not to work the team would also not be against buying a piece of a radio station which the Saint Louis Cardinals have recently done, or even owning one outright. This would just be another deal on top of the very profitable television deal that the red sox also already possess. Frankly I think that this idea is very dangerous. Baseball already has a great chasm between the upper revenue teams, like the Red Sox and Yankees, and the lower revenue teams like the Pirates and Royals. The lower revenue teams don’t need another factor further widening this revenue discrepancy. I think that this will only continue to get worse, until Major League Baseball implements a revenue sharing plan like that that exists in the NFL. Instead of individual teams keeping the revenue they earn from radio or television completely, the NFL shares that revenue between the home and visiting team, allowing smaller markets to cash in on large market areas where lots more consumers exist such as in New York City. Until baseball does do some sort of revenue sharing I fear that the rich will continue to just get richer!
volume 8 issue 44 pg 11 "Chargers add Coors Light as beer sponsor."
This article talks about how the San Diego Chargers made a deal with Coors light to be its new beer for the stadium. Anheiser Busch bought out the Miller brewing company for rights at their field. Coors will appear in the backdrop of all team press conferences, which will replace the motorola backdrops and have team logo rights in the San Diego area. the Charger's are the first team Coors Light has signed with since last Semptember when they renewed a sponsorship with the NFL. I think its a good move for Coors Light to sponsor the Chargers because it is a big company and they advertise it well so a lot of people choose to drink that beer, and by Coors sponsoring the Chargers that will maybe bring in more fans to drink that beer.
Gary Mader
Vol. 8 Issue 44 pg. 3
"Cingular taking Madness mobile"
In the article, they discuss the agreement made by Cingular and CBS SportsLine.com to make coverage of NCAA basketball available on a cell phone. These days, everything is mobile and with the enormous popularity that college basketball has I feel this is a good idea. Personally, I love watching college basketball and I like to stay informed of the latest happenings. I actually go to CBSSportsline.com a lot to read up on various sports stories. I think they are smart to make this deal because there are a lot of diehard fans out there that will be very interested. Also, everything is mobile these days, so if you’re going to have a phone anyway you might as well have it capable of displaying latest news about NCAA basketball. The phones will pretty much have all of the same feature you would find if you visited the site except of course there will be a much smaller screen to view it on. They will give you the ability to manage a bracket for the March Madness tournament and will even offer video highlights. This is a huge step for the companies, especially with the recent release of ESPN’s new mobile ‘sports’ phone. With this new technology, the new phone by Cingular will compete with ESPN’s to become a regular thing for sports fans.
March 13-19
Volume 8 Issue 44 Pg 7
Red Sox seek MLB’s largest radio rights deal
The 2004 world champions have purchased a radio deal for $15 million a year. A radio station can bring their marketing demands to a new level. A greater widespread of the Red Sox baseball throughout more of the New England area will generate more followers of the Sox and will lead to more Sox sales. I believe all baseball teams should have their own specific radio channel to broadcast their games and have their own sport talk shows. Which ever way to make organization money and good marketing techniques will produce more listeners. From season ticket to individual game giveaways, fans will tine in. More of a local fan base but with XM radio, fans worldwide can tune into the Red Sox Radio Network.
“NBA’s ‘silent game’ exciting in arena, but feels flat on television”
Volume 8 Issue 43 PG 29
Last month the NBA held a silent game between the Orlando Magic and Houston Rockets. The game consisted of no music during play, no announcers, the Philadelphia Flyer’s organist, a pep band, cameras, microphones, and a near sell out crowd.
For fans at the game there was music during game breaks, but it was all ‘70’s themed which also played into the dancing and dress. While the game was being played the organ and pep band carried the crowd through the excitement of the game.
Ross Nethery who wrote the article and seemed to believe that a large reason that it was successful if you were at the game was because of the two offensive powered teams kept it a close game, Yao Ming was playing and a large portion of the audience were Chinese. While the television version seemed to be less of a hit, there were less replays and excitement in the arena was carried through the broadcast. The roaring crowd could barely be heard on TV. But the players and officials were heard a lot better than usual.
They seem to be planning on doing it again just with more microphones and cameras, to make it as good for the television audience as it is for the fans in attendance.
I think this is a really awesome idea for sports, because I personally like going to any sporting event better than watching it. Without announcers and all that it would seem more like it does when you are there. While if I was there I think it would be a lot of fun to not have the distractions of loud music and all of that.
“NHL still working to melt ice off national television ratings”
Volume 8 Issue 44 page 13
When the NHL is on NBC or ABC it receives high marks for production and posts about a 1.1 household rating. Despite NBC not showing Olympic hockey in any prime-time spots the medal games scored 2.5 and 2.9 ratings on a weekend morning and afternoon. FSN ratings are up an average of four percent, putting them at .83 on average.
Meanwhile national cable broadcasts are struggling. OLN, who replaced ESPN as hockey’s cable broadcaster has a rating of .19 for the games it has shown, a 64 percent drop in ratings. When games were on ESPN2 they had ratings on .22 but that is largely due to the fact one third of the audience of these games is the home team’s fans and ESPN2 was often blacked out in the home team’s region. After factoring those in ratings are down 41 percent and households are down 58 percent. The league and OLN are hoping to boost the ratings next season, after this transitional season they have had little success with. The league hired a new sports producer to work along side with other highly talented professionals in the broadcasting area to help increase their product.
NHL still working to melt ice off national television rating.
Volume 8 Issue 44 page. 13
The strike is over in the NHL and they have reached a deal two year $135 millon deal with Comcast owners of OLN for a TV deal. The NHL is struggling with their national television ratings, this could be from the fact that hockey is not an entertaining sport to watch on TV, or that the OLN's claim to fame is showing the Tour De France. Through the first 40 games OLN is averaging 122,000 households and a 0.19 rating. Tha is 75 percent less then ESPN's average households at this point in the season last year. The NHL is setting records with attendance at the game, but their TV ratings have taken a dive. For me hockey is much for fun to play and watch live at the arena, but on TV hockey is just boring to watch. The low ratings on TV could be because of the strike last season, the MLB was the same way after their strike. Inorder to get a better feel for the NHL TV ratings, we will have to wait and see how they are next season.
"Chasing airline sponsorship dollars? Good luck"
Vol. 8 Issue 44 Pg 21
This article discusses the very small chance of a venue receiving sponsorship from national airlines. Very few airlines have sponsorship dollars invested in sports. The ones that do include Continental and Southwest who have the largest dollars sunk into athletic sponsorships. But we shouldn’t expect to see much support from other carriers anytime soon because of their struggling economy. Airlines have recovered post 9/11, but as the article tells us, at best these airlines have only reached their levels of spending before 9/11. These financial situations mean that very little can be spent on sport sponsorship.
Southwest, one of the few profitable airlines, is the only airline investing in national sports sponsorships. Southwest has investments in both the NBA and the NFL. The manager of sports marketing at Southwest believes that sports sponsorships and media driven ratings are the most important measurement, because Southwest’s frequent customers resemble sports fans.
Continental also has large investments in the sports industry with sponsorships primarily in New York. Their sponsorships are affiliated with the Yankees, Knicks, Rangers, Nets, New York City Marathon and several other franchises in New York. Continental Airlines strategy is to create unique experiences for their frequent fliers.
Although there are a few other small carriers with sponsorships in sports, Southwest and Continental are currently the most successful. Although this is fortunate for those two carriers, other carriers and national sport media suffer because of the lack in ability to participate in sponsorships. This is only another small example of how our economy is still be affected by the 9/11 attacks. Airlines have obviously suffered the most, but they are clearly not alone.
Matt Valentine
Volume 8 Issue 44 Page 15
Colts work to renew all suite leases for final year at RCA Dome
The Indianapolis Colts are planning to open a new stadium in 2008 and are in the process of trying to renew the 104 skybox leases that are left over from the RCA dome. They need to figure out what to do about the leases because this will be the last season that the Colts will play in the RCA dome. There is a hidden risk lurking in that they need to renew the leases to help fund the up and coming 500 million dollar stadium. Lucas Oil Stadium hopes to secure enough suite leases so that so that the team does not have to exercise an “out” clause which will force a lot of contributors to fall out of the deal for the new venue. The Colts are trying to pitch long term deals with their top clients to secure the skybox leases for the new stadium. The prices range from $40,000 for an 8 box suite to $275,000 for a fifty yard line thirty six person mega suite. The Colts are also in the process of making a video of what the new leases will look like. I think that this is an excellent idea because if I was going t invest into a facility that hasn’t even been built yet, I would want to have an idea of what it looked like before I started forking over thousands of dollars. The Colts are a team that have been very successful in recent years and I hope that they are able to secure the funds necessary to build their new facility.
Vol 8 issue 44
“Red Bull energizes MLS with team purchase”
This article talks about how major league soccer is trying to diversify its investor base. Currently Anschultz Entertainment group (AEG) owns four teams after they recently sold the MetroStars to the Red Bull company. AEG is being considered a backbone of the league and that he only owned this many teams out of necessity for the league to succeed rather than want. Red Bull’s total commitment which includes $30 million for the team plus 50% ownership of the new soccer-specific stadium is somewhere in the ball park of 9 figures. I think this is a positive step for major league soccer. With a well known company like Red Bull putting its money into the sport I think there in time may be a bigger draw to soccer. I think more big companies should follow suit and become more involved in the sport of soccer. Major companies pump tons of money into almost every other sport. Isn’t it soccer’s turn?
Volume 8 issue 44 page 23
Road Trip! Fans look for unique experiences.
This article discusses the recent rise in the sports fan travel industry that has until recently been on a bit of a slump. this article discusses how industry leaders have started to market travel packages of all economic prices to fit the needs of all sports fans. the article mentioned that 2 out of every 5 adults who traveld in the last 5 years has attended a sporting event. That equals 75 million potential clients for Travel industries. The article discusses how the SUPerBowl, Final 4, and World Series are still the big events there are plenty more to suit everyone. Universities are starting to use travel packages as well. The article mentioned how UCLA will play its first football game at NOtre Dame in over 40 years and packages that are being offered for that game ranging from $870-$1200. They also mentioned packages for sports fans who are interested in NASCAR and also a package to visit the football hall of fame in Canton.
Red Sox seek MLB’s largest radio rights deal
Volume 8 issue 44 page 7
On the last year of their contract with Entercom’s WEEI-AM radio station, the Sox are thinking of buying their own radio station instead of renewing their contract. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim already own their own radio station and St. Louis Cardinals own shares in their local radio station which is another option the sox are looking in to as well. Right now the Red Sox are looking for a 12-15 million dollar a year deal compares to their current one that is between 10-12 million dollars that would make this the biggest deal between a radio station and an MLB club to date. The WEEI-AM has risen to the top of the ratings since getting the rights to the Red Sox in 1999 and now could be losing them to other station that are interested. The big problem is that all the stations interested have weaker signal strength then WEEI-AM although WTKK an FM station as added a weekend sports program as well as launching a format station in Philadelphia last fall. The New York Yankees are also looking in to buying a radio station. This looks like the newest trend in MLB.
Buying a radio station is right up the Red Sox alley since they own the majority of NESN the regional cable provider in Boston, so they have a lot of experience in Broadcasting. Entercom has not commented on this issue, but has positioned them selves to hold on to the Red Sox by expanding its reach by buying stations and acquiring frequencies in Rhode Island and in Western Massachusetts. A spokesman of the Red Sox said that signal strength, financial condition, and local commitment would play a big role in their decision making.
Brewers near larger deal with top sponsor Miller Brewing
Volume 8 Issue 44
The Milwaukee Brewers are cashing in on the sponsorships this coming baseball season. They have renewed 95% of the club's business sponsors for this season. In recent years they only renewed 80%. That is a huge jump I think. To make it even better they even added new sponsors. I like how the Brewers not only renewed contracts with their old sponsors but went out there and rounded up some new ones. That's what marketing is all about. The reason why the new sponsors are showing interests in the Brewers is because they finally had a winning season. Just goes to show you if you are a winning ball club then people are going to want to sign sponsorship deals with you. As a sponsor you dont want your billboard or what not being shown where there are hardly any fans in the stands. You want the team you are sponsoring to win ball games and be successful so your attendence increases which makse more people see your buisness or whatever it maybe you are advertising. As long as the Brewers keep winning the more sponsorships deals they will make. Winning pays off.
vol.8 iss44 pg.4
"Cingular taking Madness mobile"
For this years NCAA tournament, Cingular will be allowing subscribers to use there phones to see highlights, analysis, and a bracket challenge. Cingular and CBS Sports, NCAA sponsor, have come to an agreement so that this could be possible. Sprint Wireless has also done the same as Cingular. Sprint doesn’t allow you to view game highlights from the tournament though. This will allow all fans to be having instant access to game highlight and information. One thing that the deal does not include is that of free live video feed. You are only able to view highlights and analysis. Since cell phone screens are so small, CBS Sports will try to get closer in shots and more under the basket action. I think that this is a good idea because with everyone’s busy lives it is hard to sit down and catch the news, especially when all you want to see is just the scores and highlights. This allows you to have instant access at your fingertips. This allows Cingular and Sprint to get out in the major market as well and show people some of the special and new features that subscribers have if they switch over to either provider. This way you will never miss the action and always the scores with you wherever you might be.
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