U.S. Ambassador to Canada Gordon Giffin said that
Canadian NHL cities should consider giving the same tax and
financial incentives that U.S. cities provide to keep their
sports teams, according to Ken Grey of the OTTAWA CITIZEN.
Giffin's comments came while speaking to the editorial board
of the Ottawa Citizen yesterday and echoed those made by NHL
Commissioner Gary Bettman last week. Giffin said that he
feels sports teams are "good for cities economically and
thus should get municipal subsidies." Giffin: "It's our
view that it is good public policy. It is demonstrably in
the interests of the community" (OTTAWA CITIZEN, 4/21).
BETTMAN PROFILED: Bettman is interviewed by Terry
Lefton in the current BRANDWEEK. After Bettman's first five
years, the "consensus is, despite some ups and down, the NHL
is simply doing business better under Bettman." But the
"most striking juxtaposition between NHLs of now and five
years ago, according to those doing business with the
league, is that it is just more polished, buttoned up and
marketing-savvy then it ever has been." But noting the low
TV ratings, Lefton adds the league still "has to prove
itself able to deliver eyeballs consistently on a national
basis." On the business side, Bettman said that licensed
apparel is "moving well" at retail, with some apparel
licensees in jerseys up over 30%. Bettman: "Overall, we are
up double-digits, which is certainly bucking the industry
trend. ... On the sponsorship side, we've got (hockey-themed
advertising and promotional) execution from brands like
Surge, MasterCard and Wendy's." Bettman said the league has
met little sponsorship resistance on the national level and
added, "We're efficient. Because of our viewer-per-viewer
household and (with the resultant) targeting, you get a
better concentration of the key demographics from us; not
the broad fan base you might get somewhere else." On
receiving exposure vs. upfront rights fees in negotiating
sponsorships: "Overall, I still think the exposure and
promotion are more important to us than the rights fees.
That's how we deliver value." On TV: "We're still finding
our way with Fox." Asked if the NHL is a viable national TV
property: "Talk to me in two years. ... [I]t is still a work
in progress. People are watching in record (aggregate)
numbers, but we are still fine tuning" (BRANDWEEK, 4/20).
