After "blasting" competitors for selling ice beers with
higher alcohol levels, Anheuser-Busch is "quietly shipping a
higher-alcohol version of its Ice Draft from Budweiser to three
of its key Midwestern markets."  New Ice Draft shipments to OH,
MI and Chicago show the beer's alcohol content at 5.5%, up from
5%.  Bud's Ice Draft had been the only ice beer at premium
alcohol level, with A-B "claiming anything higher would be
irresponsible."  Ice Draft's supermarket share has slipped from
2% to 1%, but A-B executives say they are happy with the beer and
"plan heavy support" for it in '95.  Senior Brand Manager Mike
LaBroad "termed the change a trivial one" driven by consumers
used to full-bodied Canadian ice beers.  Miller Brewing President
John Bowlin said he was "not surprised":  "Welcome to Miller
time" (Gerry Khermouch, BRANDWEEK, 10/31 issue).
     THIS YEN'S FOR YOU:  An NBC News report on American beer
sales in Japan reveals that Coors sold 1.2M cases there last
year, but that Budweiser sold 8M.  Foreign beers only make up 4%
of the Japanese market, "but the market, even in Japan, is
changing."  Over video of a pitcher emblazoned with the Bud logo,
NBC's Lucky Severson: "The Japanese usually like things that are
ultra-American, like Bud.  And red and white are their favorite
colors" (NBC, 11/1).

     The Atlantic Coast Conference, in conjunction with extending
its men's basketball contract for four years with Raycom and
Jefferson-Pilot Sports, has established ACC Properties -- "a free
standing business unit to manage conference-coordinated
marketing, advertising and promotional opportunities."  ACC
Properties' aim is to "offer the corporate community fully-
integrated marketing programs and multimedia advertising and
promotional opportunities on a year-round basis with the
conference."
     Among the specific marketing areas ACC Properties will
oversee:  ACC Official Corporate Partner and Promotional Partner
programs; licensing; championship merchandising; publications;
and special events, including the 22 ACC championships.  Raycom
CEO Rick Ray:  "This agreement represents a new direction for our
company and a new look in sports marketing."  Ray will sit on the
ACC Properties Board, along with J-P Sports President Ed Hull, NC
State AD Todd Turner and ACC Commissioner Gene Corrigan.
     In addition, the ACC announced Continental Airlines has
signed on as the conference's fourth official corporate partner,
joining Exxon, Hardee's and Discus Athletic.
     Yesterday, ACC Assistant Commissioner Rick Chryst spoke with
THE SPORTS BUSINESS DAILY and provided more details on the
conference's new venture.  Excerpts follow:
     THE DAILY:  What was the motivation behind this move?
     CHRYST:  We've always been very cognizant of, and have
valued, our television relationships.  Television has made the
ACC, so we have always had a very close relationship with Raycom
and Jefferson Pilot.  The events of this past year -- the CFA
breaking up and a reconfiguration of how we were doing our
football, combined with the extension of the basketball agreement
-- provided the window to formalize our marketing into our
relationship with Raycom and JP.
     THE DAILY:  How will this affect the marketing efforts of
the athletic departments of the ACC's schools?
     CHRYST:  This relates to conference inventory.  Our schools
will maintain their marketing departments and we think this will
facilitate -- at a minimum -- communication, and much more likely
some incremental revenue streams to the institutions.  But we are
not necessarily out representing Carolina or Georgia Tech or
Duke, because our schools have such varying philosophies in
regard to marketing and corporate relationships.
     THE DAILY:  So, it wouldn't prevent a Florida State or a
Duke from signing a Michigan/Nike type deal?
     CHRYST:  Not at all.  And I think we will find that there
may be certain product areas where it makes sense to work
collectively -- but others, the shoe deals probably being the
most visible, where the institution is going to drive that and we
may be less likely to get involved.
     THE DAILY:  Are there any other deals pending with potential
corporate partners?
     CHRYST:  We really haven't gotten much further down the
strategic path at this point.  But we are nearing the end of the
basketball sales season and I think when that gets in place, we
will be able to start our planning for '95 and '96.  We are
excited that we've got this type of structure to start down that
road, because I think from the corporate perspective, it should
take the number of phone calls from about thirty-eight to one.
That is what we hope.  Someone with this little slice of the ACC
and that little slice of the ACC, hopefully it can become one
integrated approach.
     THE DAILY:  How will ACC Properties' approach differ from
what other conferences are doing?
     CHRYST:  The distinguishing feature we feel about this
program is that syndicated media is the cornerstone of it. ...
Television is so important to us, that it needs to be integrated.
There have been opportunities in the past where the ACC and the
athletic directors could have said, "Here, cut a deal just for
your marketing rights."  But often you would be in competition
with your syndicator, and you could become an official corporate
partner without ever spending a dime on the television.  Those
three-and-a-half hours on Saturday afternoon or the Tuesday,
Wednesday, or Thursday nights in the winter -- that is where we
market ourselves.

     Pistons rookie Grant Hill has signed on as a spokesperson
for Schick Shaving Products.  Schick is also expanding its 11-
year NBA sponsorship with a program built around new players.
Schick assumes title sponsorship of the Rookie Game, Rookie of
the Month award, Rookie of the Year award and All-Rookie Team
(BRANDWEEK, 10/31 issue).

     FROM THIS WEEK'S BRANDWEEK:  ESPN and Radio Shack are
supporting balloting for the NFL's Pro Bowl.  Starting this week
through December 5, NFL fans will be able to vote at more than
6,600 Radio Shack stores.  ESPN will run a Pro Bowl sweepstakes
on the ballot and support with on-air promos....Logo 7 and Arena
Marketing have signed on as licensees to "Hoop Dreams," the
recent documentary about inner-city basketball....The Ben Hogan
Co. has begun distributing a two-minute video featuring the first
on-camera appearance in eight years by company founder Ben Hogan.
The video will be used at trade shows and will be distributed
nationwide to 1,000 pro shops....Vitamin maker Pharmavite has
signed former Raider Howie Long as spokesperson for its new
Regimin line of nutritional supplements (BRANDWEEK, 10/31 issue).
     MORE MARKETING NEWS & NOTES:  On "Entertainment Tonight"
reports a TV series based on Disney's Mighty Ducks movies is
"under way" and a third sequel in the film series is also planned
("ET," 11/1)....Coca-Cola Enterprises said yesterday that it haS
signed a nonbinding letter of intent to buy the bottling
operations of the Wichita Coca-Cola Bottling Company for $150M
(WALL STREET JOURNAL, 11/2).

     Reebok announced yesterday that they have moved their  $80M
media planning and buying account from DeWitt Media to Leo
Burnett.  Reebok Senior VP of Global Marketing Services David
Ropes: "The decision to consolidate global media planning with
Leo Burnett is a natural evolution of the advertising and
marketing partnership we formed with the agency over one year
ago."  DeWitt's relationship with Reebok will continue, although
on a much smaller scale (COWLES BUSINESS MEDIA, 11/1).

     ABC is telling advertisers that ad spots for this year's
Super Bowl are "nearly sold out" at a record price of more than
$1M for each half-minute commercial spot.  The average 30-second
spot for the January 29th Super Bowl is selling for $1.2M, a 26%
rise from '94.  Industry execs say Super Bowl sponsors include
past advertisers PepsiCo, McDonald's, Anheuser-Busch, Nike and
Masterlock.  Other past advertisers are unsure whether they will
appear again.  ABC Sales and Marketing President Marvin Goldsmith
said that advertisers "especially crave" Super Bowl XXIX because
there is a "paucity of major sports events" due to the baseball
strike and NHL lockout: "There is no better place to reach men"
(Kevin Goldman, WALL STREET JOURNAL, 11/2).