| | The Daily Insider
Afternoon News & Headlines
Thursday, December 20, 2001
4:00pm ET | |
| • | Analysts Predict AT&T-Comcast Merger To Generate $18B Annually |
| • | Heiberg Tapped To Replace Dick Pound As IOC Marketing Head |
| • | Oscar De La Hoya Hops In The Promotions Ring With New Firm |
| • | Hey Now, You're An All Star, Get Your Lawsuit On, Go Play |
| • | TIME Weighs In With Their "Best Of 2001 – Sports." What Do You Think Won? |
| • | Buzzer Beaters/Articles Of Interest/Channel Surfing |
AT&T, COMCAST MERGER CREATES ONE CABLE "BEHEMOTH"
CNET News.com reports that the new company created by the $72B merger of AT&T Broadband and Comcast "will be a cable industry behemoth, with projected revenue of $18 billion a year and 22 million subscribers in 41 states." AT&T CEO C. Michael Armstrong "sees the broadband unit and Comcast accomplishing more together than they could alone," saying during a conference call, "There is no question in my mind that this bundle works in the market and works in the bottom line." Armstrong will be Chair of the new cable company, and Comcast CEO Brian Roberts will be the new company's CEO. The deal "is expected to close in 2002" (CNET News.com, 12/20).
At presstime, shares of AT&T were trading at $17.80, up 5.95%. Shares of Comcast were trading at $35.61, down 6.46% (THE DAILY).
HEIBERG TO REPLACE POUND AS HEAD OF IOC MARKETING UNIT
BLOOMBERG NEWS reports that IOC member Gerhard Heiberg will replace Dick Pound as head of the organization's marketing and TV commission. Heiberg, who has been with the IOC since '94 and served as President of the '94 Lillehammer Winter Olympics organizing committee, becomes the IOC's contact with its major corporate sponsors and TV partners (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 12/20).
DE LA HOYA GETS INTO THE PROMOTION RING WITH NEW FIRM
Oscar De La Hoya announced today that he will expand into the business side of boxing with the formation of Golden Boy Promotions, a national boxing promotional firm. De La Hoya: "The focus … will not only be with Hispanics. My door will be open to fighters from all over the world who are looking to find a platform, which will allow them to grow and perform at their best. Our value proposition will be built on high ethical standards, total transparency and competence" (THE DAILY).
CONVERSE FILES SUIT AGAINST REEBOK'S USE OF ALL STAR LOGO
REUTERS reports that Converse Inc. on Friday will "urge a federal judge to stop rival Reebok International Ltd. from using its 'All Star' trademark on shoes" endorsed by 76ers G Allen Iverson. In a lawsuit filed on Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Boston, Converse accuses Reebok of "copying the same All Star logo used on Converse's famous Chuck Taylor shoes" (REUTERS, 12/20).
BUZZER BEATERS
TIME named their "Best of 2001 – Sport" in the current issue. The following lists the top ten (TIME, 12/24 issue):
1. The World Series
2. Lance Armstrong
3. Jennifer Capriati
4. Barry Bonds
5. Mario Lemieux
6. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
7. Tiger Woods
8. Erik Weihenmayer
9. The Baltimore Ravens
10. Football Fans
The NTRA today announced that NBC Sports won the "Eclipse Award for National Television – Live Racing Programming" for its production of the '01 Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships, which aired October 27 from Elmont, NY (THE DAILY).
CA-based StarInsider, Inc. has partnered with Buffer Enterprises Inc. to launch the official Web sites for entertainment personalities Michael and Bruce Buffer (THE DAILY).
The AUSTRALIAN NEWS NETWORK reports that News Corp.'s "takeover offer for Brisbane Broncos will go-ahead." News Corp. currently owns 44.9% of the rugby team (AUSTRALIAN NEWS NETWORK, 12/20).
BLOOMBERG NEWS reports John McEnroe is "close to signing an agreement to co-host a weekday sports show on ESPN Radio's affiliate in New York." McEnroe: "You always wait until the ink dries, but I'm looking forward to working in radio. I've always loved radio" (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 12/20).
Ron Howard's "A Beautiful Mind" and Baz Luhrmann's "Moulin Rouge" topped the list of Golden Globe nominees today with six nominations each. Joining "A Beautiful Mind" on the list for best film drama were "Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" and critical hits "Mulholland Drive," "In the Bedroom" and "The Man Who Wasn't There" (REUTERS, 12/20).
Will Smith has been nominated for the Golden Globe's "Best Actor in a Drama" for his portrayal of Muhammad Ali in the Michael Mann film, "Ali" (AP, 12/20).
USA TODAY BASEBALL WEEKLY's Bob Nightengale awarded his "The Ironic Twist" award to The Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society, who "honored the Brewers for having the best training staff in the major leagues." Head Trainer John Adam accepted the award for the club, even though the club fired Adam after the season "because of the Brewers' long history of injuries" (USA TODAY BASEBALL WEEKLY, 12/19 issue).
TONIGHT'S EVENTS
Nike Inc. will release the results of its Q2 ended November 30 during a conference call at 5:00pm ET (THE DAILY).
The Mavericks will host teacher appreciation night at tonight's game against the Bucks at the American Airlines Center (THE DAILY).
Knicks C Marcus Camby will host 20 students grades 3 through 6 for a holiday shopping spree at 5:00pm ET at the NBA Store in N.Y. Following the event, Camby will read to the children (THE DAILY).
The AHL Cleveland Barons will hand out Barons stress pucks during tonight's game against the Rochester Americans. Fans presenting a valid college ID will receive $2 off of any regular ticket price (THE DAILY).
IN OTHER NEWS……..
The WASHINGTON TIMES reports current economic conditions "are giving East Coast resorts an upper hand in their effort to convince skiers to forget Vail, Colo., and ski locally instead." Consumers, "still wary of travel, are buying more passes for local ski areas, rather than heading cross-country to the more well-known resorts" (WASHINGTON TIMES, 12/20).
The ASPEN TIMES reports "Aspen and Snowmass will not have the highest-priced lift ticket in the land this winter," as Aspen Skiing Co.'s $65 ticket is topped by Snowbird, UT's $68, Vail's $67 and Telluride's $66. All prices are for single-day lift tickets. Aspen Skiing Co. COO John Norton says $65 "is as high as the variable price will go this season" (ASPEN TIMES, 12/20).
TODAY'S ARTICLES OF INTEREST
The HOUSTON CHRONICLE's David Barron lists a number of reasons sports fans are so angry.
The BOSTON GLOBE's Tony Chamberlain on the '02 Winter Games' prominent placement of snowboarding.
See The Daily Insider's Articles Of Interest section for more sports business-related links.
THE DAILY STATS: BILLBOARD'S TOP ALBUMS
The following lists Billboard Magazine's top-selling CDs for the week ending December 17 (BILLBOARD, 12/29):
| RK | ALBUM | ARTIST | LABEL |
| 1) | Weathered | Creed | Wind-up |
| 2) | Now 8 | Various | EMI |
| 3) | Britney | Britney Spears | Jive |
| 4) | Scarecrow | Garth Brooks | Capital |
| 5) | Christmas Extraordinaire | Mannheim Steamroller | American Gramaphone |
| 6) | Now … Christmas | Various | EMI |
| 7) | Silver Side Up | Nickelback | Roadrunner |
| 8) | A Day Without Rain | Enya | Reprise |
| 9) | Rock Steady | No Doubt | Interscope |
| 10) | Hybrid Theory | Linkin Park | Warner Bros. |
Today's L.A. Times' "Now You Know" features the following chart based on info from the book "Film Facts," written by Patrick Robertson. From 1910, Hollywood has made more movies about boxing than any other sport, here's how the sports stack up (L.A. TIMES, 12/20):
| Subject | # |
| Boxing | 204 |
| Horse Racing | 139 |
| Football | 123 |
| Baseball | 85 |
| Motor Racing | 85 |
| Basketball | 41 |
CHANNEL SURFING
ESPN2 will air men's college basketball, Tennessee-Louisville, at 7:00pm ET.
ESPN will air college football's Tangerine Bowl, N.C. State-Pittsburgh, at 7:30pm ET.
TBS will air men's college basketball's John Thompson Foundation Classic, Georgetown (16)-Virginia (5), at 8:00pm ET.
ESPN2 will air men's college basketball, Memphis-Temple, at 9:00pm ET.
TNT will air Lakers-Rockets at 9:00pm ET.
ESPN Classic's "SportsCentury" will profile Magic Johnson at 8:00pm ET.
Former MLBer John Kruk will be on FSN's "The Last Word."
E!'s "True Hollywood Story" will profile the TV show "Dallas" at 8:00pm ET.
A&E's "Biography" will profile Michael Landon at 8:00pm ET.
ABC's "Primetime" will profile 17 babies born to victims of the September 11 tragedy at 10:00pm ET.
PBS' Charlie Rose will interview Klaus Schwab, Founder and President of the World Economic Forum, at 11:00pm ET.
HEADLINERS
Here are tonight's headline guests on the following talk shows:
| "The Late Show" | Marisa Tomei |
| "The Tonight Show" | Tim Allen |
| "The Late Late Show" | Kelly Lynch |
| "Late Night" | Natalie Merchant |
If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please let us know at:
dailyinsider@sportsbusinessdaily.com
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