MLB is calling the Subway Series "the biggest hot
market ever" in terms of licensed product sales, according
to Andy Bernstein of the SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL. MLB
VP/Licensing Howard Smith said that "when all the sales are
counted," 2000 World Series merchandise will have "outsold
products tied to Super Bowl XXXI, which he valued at" $118M.
While the NFL claims that retail sales around that Super
Bowl were $130M, Smith "questioned" that figure
(SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 11/13 issue). MLB served lawsuits
against 492 counterfeiters trafficking imitation MLB apparel
over the last three weeks. MLBP confiscated almost 39,000
items bearing counterfeited MLB trademarks (CAPS).
BRAND BUILDER: NFL Senior VP/Marketing & Entertainment
Programming John Collins is listed as one of BRANDWEEK's
"Marketers of the Next Generation," and Terry Lefton writes
that Collins "merits mention in this year's crop ... since
he's drafting the marketing blueprints at a time when the
NFL is rebuilding its off-field businesses. Topping
Collins' agenda is a repositioning he hopes will make the
NFL more akin to Disney." Collins: "Internally, we've never
thought about [the NFL] enough as a brand that has to
compete in the bigger world of entertainment. We should be
perceived as a monster consumer entertainment brand, because
we also produce programming that networks build their
schedules around and we put billions of dollars of product
on retail shelves. I want people to see the NFL brand the
same way they see Viacom and Disney" (BRANDWEEK, 11/13).
