Ad inventory for the NCAA men's basketball tournament is 95% sold, with the remaining spots expected to move after the event starts, according to execs with CBS Sports and Turner Sports. Execs also said online inventory for "March Madness Live" is sold out. Sources said the networks are seeing price increases in the mid-to-high single digits, with a 30-second spot in the Final Four going for $750,000-800,000. A similar ad in the Championship game is going for $1.3-1.4M. Ad sales execs say they have seen a lot of activity in the auto, telco and banking sectors. They have commitments from the NCAA's 16 official partners, including the three corporate champion partners -- AT&T, Coke and Capital One. CBS Sports Senior VP/Sales & Marketing Chris Simko said, "The market developed slowly." He pointed to Super Bowl XLVIII being played in N.Y. and the Sochi Games as big events that threatened to take a lot of ad dollars out of the market. CBS Exec VP/Sports Sales & Marketing John Bogusz: "We were concerned about the competition this year, but we're pleased that we're at a pre-sold level." Turner Sports Exec VP/Ad Sales & Marketing Jon Diament added he was not surprised to see advertisers support the tournament. He said, "Many networks are producing interesting content. But advertisers need ratings points, and the NCAA Tournament delivers them" (John Ourand, Staff Writer).
FINAL FOUR DETAILS: Turner Broadcasting System President David Levy said that the programmer "will begin eyeing announcer talent from local radio and local cable vehicles after the Sweet 16 field is established" for its Final Four telecasts that will be geared to the specific teams. Levy: "The most important thing is we want to get that local flavor. It's almost like a 'homer' type situation on a national basis" (MULTICHANNEL.com, 3/11). Levy said the "Teamcast" has "an expense to it." He added, "But we believe that if we're going to push ourselves ... sometimes it's going to come with an expense" (CABLEFAX DAILY, 3/12). Each telecast "will have
its own pregame and halftime show, which Levy noted could feature a
celebrity who went to that school" (BROADCASTINGCABLE.com, 3/11). In N.Y., Richard Sandomir notes the localized broadcasts are an "obvious appeal to fans of the Final Four teams and, perhaps, to casual fans who are not wedded to the standard, down-the-middle broadcast." Sandomir writes of local announcers calling Final Four games, "If their emotional schtick is acceptable locally during the regular season, why not in the Final Four?" Turner analyst Charles Barkley criticized the plan and said, "It's bad for viewers. It makes you laugh, sometimes; these guys are ridiculous." Levy said, "The idea is to be innovative. We think it will play well on social media and our March Madness Live app" (N.Y. TIMES, 3/12).
