| | The Daily Insider
Afternoon News & Headlines
Tuesday, December 10, 2002
4:00pm ET | |
| |
| • | Sony Playstation To Become Rose Bowl Sponsor |
| • | Bodenheimer Today Says That ESPN Advertising Is Up 5-8% |
| • | NBC Sports Names John McGuinness Senior Producer Of Olympic Profiles Unit |
| • | SunTrust Bank To Continue Title Sponsorship Of Richmond IRL Event |
| • | Coyotes Today Name Doug Moss As President & COO |
| • | Buzzer Beaters/Daily Stat/Tonight's Events/In Other News/Channel Surfing |
SONY PLAYSTATION REPLACES AT&T AS ROSE BOWL SPONSOR
The AP reports that Sony Playstation has replaced AT&T as the sponsor of the Rose Bowl. ABC Sports own the rights to choose who sponsors the Rose Bowl, but the Tournament of Roses Association has "a final say in the sponsorship" (AP, 12/10). AT&T ended its four-year presenting sponsorship of the game in April (THE DAILY).
BODENHEIMER SAYS SCATTER-MARKET SALES STRONG
BROADCASTING & CABLE reports that ESPN President George Bodenheimer spoke today at UBS Warburg's 30th Annual Media Week Conference and said that the net's "scatter-market advertising is up" 5-8% over last spring's upfront pricing, and that ad rates for '03 are "up double-digits" over FY '02. Bodenheimer: "We can sell everything from a Saturday-morning outdoor-sports unit to the Super Bowl and everything in between." Responding to critics of ESPN Original Entertainment, Bodenheimer said that original shows account for only 5% of ESPN's schedule. Bodenheimer: "It's a good strategy. We can create and own more of our own programming" (BROADCASTINGCABLE.com, 12/10).
ANHEUSER-BUSCH, NBA EXTEND GLOBAL MARKETING PARTNERSHIP
Anheuser-Busch and the NBA today announced a multi-year extension of their global marketing partnership, to include the WNBA and NBDL. Budweiser has been a global partner of the NBA since '88, and Bud Light has sponsored the WNBA since its inception in '97. REUTERS notes that Anheuser-Busch's renewal comes as the company "tries to expand its market share in international markets and the NBA highlights the popularity of many players from outside" the U.S. in its league (REUTERS, 12/10).
MCGUINNESS TO PRODUCE OLYMPIC ATHLETE FEATURES
NBC Sports today announced that John McGuinness was named Senior Producer, heading the NBC Olympic Profiles Unit, which produces features of Olympic athletes. McGuinness joined NBC Sports in '91 as a Senior Associate Producer and has worked four Olympic Games for the net (THE DAILY).
SHERYL CROW TO HEADLINE NHL ALL-STAR BLOCK PARTY CONCERT
The NHL announced today that Sheryl Crow will perform a live outdoor concert on the Center Ice Stage at the '03 NHL All-Star Block Party presented by Nextel adjacent to Office Depot Center on February 2 at 6:30pm ET. Tickets to the event, which cost $20-50, go on sale this Friday. The eight-acre outdoor hockey and entertainment festival is free and open to the public from January 30-February 1 (THE DAILY).
BUZZER BEATERS
SunTrust Bank announced that it will return as title sponsor of the IRL event in '03 at Richmond Int'l Raceway. The third annual SunTrust Indy Challenge, scheduled for Saturday, June 28, 2003, will be broadcast live on ESPN (THE DAILY).
Coyotes Chair & Gov. Steve Ellman today officially announced that the team has hired former Mighty Ducks Senior VP/Business Operations Doug Moss as President & COO (THE DAILY).
The INDIANAPOLIS STAR reports that the Colts Business Alliance was scheduled to meet today for the first time to "look for ways to boost support" for the Colts. The creation of the alliance by Mayor Bart Peterson and the Colts is "the first of many expected moves aimed at selling a skeptical public on the idea of increasing public spending" on the team (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 12/10).
REUTERS reports that adidas-Salomon CEO Herbert Hainer today "reaffirmed the company's previously issued expectations" for '03 and said that the company will achieve its '02 earnings growth target of 5-10% (REUTERS, 12/10).
Sporting News today named Univ. of Notre Dame football coach Ty Willingham its "Sportsman of the Year" (THE DAILY).
The AP reports that the home and offices of German IOC VP Thomas Bach "have been searched in connection with a tax evasion and embezzlement case" (AP, 12/10).
The MLS Revolution today announced that an int'l friendly match between Spain's Barcelona F.C. and Italy's Juventus F.C. will be played at Gillette Stadium on Sunday, July, 27, 2003. The game will be included in the Revolution's season-ticket package (THE DAILY).
The MLS Galaxy and Radio Korea today entered into a one-year broadcasting agreement, making Radio Korea the club's official Korean-language gameday broadcaster. The station will provide coverage of the season opener and all home games from the club's new soccer stadium at the Home Depot Center (THE DAILY).
"A Red Dawn Rises: The Story of the 2002 Anaheim Angels" goes on sale today. Both the video and DVD retail for $19.95 (THE DAILY).
After a failed attempt to auction sponsorship of Dartmouth College's swimming and diving teams on eBay, the AP reports that a group of parents "hope to raise $5[M] in an attempt to save" the program (AP, 12/10).
FLW Outdoors today announced that Skippy Peanut Butter has signed on as an associate sponsor of its various fishing tournaments. As part of the agreement, Skippy will have a presence at the tournaments' Family Fun Zone (THE DAILY).
THINGS COULD BE WORSE:
- The ARIZONA REPUBLIC reports that Phoenix resident Ray Mills won the $1M grand prize at the Fiesta Bowl's annual hole-in-one contest. When he learned that the money will be paid out in 480 monthly installments, Mills said, "I was a little upset over that. All is not what it seems sometimes" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 12/10).
TODAY'S ARTICLES OF INTEREST
The PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER's Marc Narducci profiles Washington Sports and Entertainment President Susan O'Malley, the NBA's only female team president. In addition to running the Wizards, she also heads the WNBA Mystics, the MCI Center and Ticketmaster Washington-Baltimore. O'Malley is involved with marketing and promotion with the team, leaving Michael Jordan and GM Wes Unseld to handle player-personnel decisions: "I'm in charge of making the money, and Michael Jordan is in charge of spending the money. … I run the revenue side of business for Abe Pollin" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER).
The N.Y. TIMES' Bruni & Carassava examine Athens' preparations leading up to the '04 Olympics, writing that the city "is on a mad dash," with two ambitions driving them. The first is "the desire of Greek officials to put to rest the widespread worry among outsiders that the country fell behind schedule in preparing for the Games and still teeters on the brink of disaster." The second is that Greek officials believe that the '04 Games will be "an utterly transforming event, the pivot and catalyst for a new national (and international) image, modernity and prosperity" (N.Y. TIMES).
The CINCINNATI BUSINESS COURIER's Dan Monk looks at efforts in Cincinnati to file a breach of contract lawsuit against the Bengals, based on an introductory sentence in the team's lease for Paul Brown Stadium, which states that the purpose of a 1996 sales tax was "to keep competitive and viable major league" teams in Cincinnati. Local attorney Tim Mara, who in '00 lost a suit to invalidate the team's lease, believes "it's evidence of a lack of good faith on the part of the Bengals organization … the lack of scouts, the lack of a general manager. It's all the money the Bengals could spend to make the team better, but instead they keep the money in their pocket" (CINCINNATI BUSINESS COURIER).
See The Daily Insider's Articles of Interest section for these and more sports business-related links.
IN OTHER NEWS……
Car & Driver Editor-In-Chief Csaba Csere appeared on NBC's "Today" this morning to discuss his magazine's top ten cars for '03 ("Today," NBC, 12/10).
| MANUFACTURER/MAKE | MANUFACTURER/MAKE |
| Honda Accord | Ford Focus |
| Mazda 6 Series | Subaru Impreza WRX |
| BMW 3 Series | Acura RSX |
| Chevy Corvette | Infiniti G35 |
| Nissan 350Z | Porsche Boxster |
The N.Y. POST reports that NBC Chair Bob Wright, "who sharply criticized ['The Sopranos'] violent nature in a widely circulated" May '01 memo, was pictured during the show's season finale on a television speaking at a National Broadcasters Association convention (N.Y. POST, 12/10).
THE DAILY STAT: NFL TOPS IN 20 LOCAL MARKETS
The following are the NFL markets in which NFL football was the top Nielsen-rated program for the week of December 2 - December 8. These numbers exclude pre/post game coverage and pay cable. NOTE: ^ = Rating reflects over-the-air and ESPN combined (THE DAILY).
| MARKET | GAME | DATE | RAT/SHR |
| Milwaukee^ | Vikings-Packers | 12/8 | 53.6/71 |
| Minneapolis^ | Vikings-Packers | 12/8 | 42.2/59 |
| New Orleans | Saints-Ravens | 12/8 | 41.5/58 |
| Buffalo | Bills-Patriots | 12/8 | 39.4/65 |
| Pittsburgh | Texans-Steelers | 12/8 | 39.4/68 |
| Denver | Broncos-Jets | 12/8 | 36.4/64 |
| Tampa | Falcons-Bucs | 12/8 | 36.4/62 |
| San Diego | Raiders-Chargers | 12/8 | 35.9/63 |
| Kansas City | Rams-Chiefs | 12/8 | 32.5/59 |
| Boston | Bills-Patriots | 12/8 | 31.2/59 |
| Philadelphia | Eagles-Seahawks | 12/8 | 28.6/44 |
| St. Louis | Rams-Chiefs | 12/8 | 27.9/52 |
| Cleveland | Browns-Jaguars | 12/8 | 27.6/53 |
| Detroit | Lions-Cardinals | 12/8 | 27.1/42 |
| San Francisco | Jets-Raiders | 12/2 | 26.6/43 |
| Dallas | 49ers-Cowboys | 12/8 | 26.4/50 |
| Nashville | Colts-Titans | 12/8 | 26.0/52 |
| Jacksonville | Browns-Jaguars | 12/8 | 25.9/45 |
| Washington, D.C. | Giants-Redskins | 12/8 | 23.6/47 |
| Houston | Texans-Steelers | 12/8 | 23.5/41 |
CHANNEL SURFING
ESPN will air NCAA men's basketball, Boston College-Iowa State at 7:00pm ET, and Kentucky-Tulane at 9:00pm.
ESPN Classic's "SportsCentury" will profile Bill Russell at 8:00pm ET.
Marshall Univ. QB Byron Leftwich, TNT NBA analyst John Thompson, Sharks C Mike Ricci, comedian Eddie Griffin and Miss USA Shaunte Hinton are scheduled to appear on FSN's "Best Damn Sports Show Period."
Former Eagles coach Buddy Ryan will appear on Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia's "SpotLIGHT" at 7:00pm ET.
A&E's "Biography" will profile Tom Hanks at 8:00pm ET.
E!'s "True Hollywood Story" will profile Saved By The Bell at 8:00pm ET.
HEADLINERS
Here are tonight's headline guests on the following talk shows:
| "Late Show" | Jason Alexander |
| "The Tonight Show" | Rudy Giuliani |
| "The Late Late Show" | Alanis Morissette |
| "Late Night" | Rob Schneider |
If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please let us know at:
dailyinsider@sportsbusinessdaily.com
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