The Mariners, prompted by "unprecedented interest" in P
Kazuhiro Sasaki, have "steadily increased the amount of
information for Japanese-speaking fans" on the team's Web
site, www.mariners.org, according to Angelo Bruscas of the
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER, who writes that the site now
features "complete Internet coverage in Japanese." Full
user sessions logged on the Web site from Japan have
increased from 5,000 per week to a peak of 7,500, and the
site's Japanese area now includes daily game recaps, ticket-
purchasing details and a link allowing visitors to see
Sasaki's locally produced TV ads (SEATTLE P-I, 5/15).
BRIGHT FUTURE: In DC, Rachel Alexander examined sports
content on the Web in a front-page feature and wrote that
"within the next five to 10 years, the way people watch
sports could change radically, with everything from
interactive [TV] to broadcast-rich Internet sites giving
fans the kind of unprecedented control and access ... that
seemed impossible a decade ago. ... No matter what direction
things take, it is likely to be, in every way possible, a
whole new ballgame." NBAE President & COO Adam Silver: "I
don't think the networks are going anywhere in the near
future, but this does give us the opportunity to have a one-
to-one relationship with our fans. Right now, broadcasting
is not our business -- what we do is run a sports league.
Of course, what that means five years from now could be
completely different" (WASHINGTON POST, 5/14).
PROTECTING ONE'S DOMAIN: In Dallas, Richard Alm wrote
that just as teams and leagues have "achieved some success
in stopping the traffic in illicit merchandise," they are
now "running into a new and more elusive threat to their
intellectual property: the Internet." Litigating on a case-
by-case basis against users improperly presenting team and
league marks and names "is a slow, expensive process. The
leagues hope a few settlements will make other offenders
change their ways. The Internet companies are mostly small
startups who are likely to be deterred by even small cash
settlements." NHL Enterprises Associate Counsel for
Intellectual Property Tom Prochnow: "We're trying to get at
least enough money to deter them and deter others who find
out about the cases" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 5/13).
