NASDAQ "has struck a multiyear deal with CBS" to
sponsor its NFL halftime show, according to sources of
Langdon Brockinton of SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL. NASDAQ has
also renewed its title sponsorship of CBS's college football
coverage. The two deals together are valued at $15-20M per
year. Under the terms of each deal, NASDAQ will get
category-exclusivity and will air multiple 30-second spots
per telecast (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 5/11).
MARKET SHARE: DAILY VARIETY's Rich Katz reports that
the NFL's TV network partners "are trying a variety of new
sales tactics" as they try to increase NFL ad prices by 20%,
but media buyers "believe they'll be able to hold price
hikes to single digits." No deals have been signed since
CBS inked Honda/Acura to be its first advertiser last month.
One media buyer: "It's pretty slow going." Katz reports
that buyers said that "one signal the networks are nervous
they'll be stuck with unsold, high-priced NFL inventory is
that the webs will likely try to package pro football with
primetime upfront inventory." Katz writes that while buyers
expect Fox and CBS to package their NFL games with the
primetime upfront, they "expect an even more strenuous push"
from ABC for "Monday Night Football." ABC is also trying to
maximize ad time by packaging "MNF" with ESPN's Sunday night
package, along with other NFL-related vehicles, including
ESPN2 and Classic Sports Network programming, as well as
ESPN Magazine and ESPN SportsZone (DAILY VARIETY, 5/11).
