In St. Louis, Robert Manor reports that Anheuser-Busch
denied ever making a bid to name Candlestick after one of its
products. A-B's Tony Ponturo: "We got calls from the San
Francisco mayor's office, saying, 'Are you sure you are not
interested?' ... We never did look at any serious proposal.
There was no offer made by us, period" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH,
9/16). 3Com's naming rights deal was faciliated by Integrated
Sports International, the marketing agency for the 49ers. Fred
Fried, Exec VP & COO of ISI, said that although the short list
included categories "that have been prevalent, such as financial
institutions and the airlines," naming rights to arenas are a
"ripe area" for growing companies in all categories. Bjorn
Rebney, ISI's Dir of West Coast Operations, said the 3Com deal
has made the Super Bowl in San Francisco a reality, adding,
"People will realize that whether or not they love the name, it
is necessary. It is a quality company and says something for
the vibrancy of the economy in San Franscisco" (THE DAILY).
TOUGH GETTING USED TO IT? George Vescey of the N.Y. TIMES
writes, "They have no shame. That's my first reaction upon
hearing that Candlestick Park has been violated by some dweeby
Silicon Valley techno-name" (N.Y. TIMES, 9/17). A press release
last week from the Giants still refers Candlestick Park (THE
DAILY). Also, ESPN's Chris Berman refused to use the new name on
"NFL GameDay" (ESPN, 9/17).
