The New York Racing Association will have Lowe &
Partners/SMS New York handle its ad account, previously managed
by Bates USA (N.Y. TIMES, 4/18)....Sega Enterprises has been
forced to revise down profit forecasts for its recently-completed
fiscal year because of the surge of the yen and "further
sluggishness" in the European market. Sega's announcement
follows a similar revision by its chief rival Nintendo (FINANCIAL
TIMES, 4/18)....As part of a review of new sport/health drinks,
BRANDWEEK notes Spalding Sports Refresher, which is produced by
former NBA star Kiki Vandeweghe's Pro-Team, is positioning itself
between an isotonic and a soda (BRANDWEEK, 4/17)....People
Magazine and Yankelovich Partners are introducing a new service
called "Pop Scores," which will track the appeal of celebrities
in terms of traits such as credibility and familiarity (N.Y.
TIMES, 4/17)...."NBA Inside Stuff" profiled "Project Home Team"
sponsored by Fannie Mae and the NBA. Fannie Mae Communications
Manager Tim Carlsgaard: "We have eight teams now, we want to get
more teams. We want to add at least three more next year" ("NBA
Inside Stuff," 4/15)....A federal court in L.A. and not in
Hammond, IN -- which is close to Robinson's hometown of Gary, IN
-- will decide whether Bucks rookie Glenn Robinson can market
sports equipment and apparel under the "Big Dog" name. Robinson
filed suit in October, 1994, against Fortune Dogs, Inc., which
holds trademark for the "Big Dogs" name. Fortune responded with
a trademark infringement lawsuit against Robinson (WASHINGTON
POST, 4/18).