 |
| Gracious Host: Marketing Firm Nets
Wildcats In Ten-Year Deal |
The Univ. of Kentucky (UK) has agreed to a ten-year contract with Host Communications and Gray Television worth more than $80M, “one of the most lucrative multimedia marketing deals in the history of college athletics,” according to Michael Smith of the Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL. The deal, effective in the ‘05-06 academic year, “dwarfs UK's old deal with Host — $17.65[M] for five years.” Host's bid of $80.475M “barely topped” Learfield’s $80.35M bid and also bettered ESPN Regional’s $74M bid and Viacom Sports’ $55.25M bid. Host will continue to own TV and radio rights to football and men's basketball, and gains rights to women's basketball and baseball. Host also will sell sponsorships, signage at all venues except Rupp Arena, and run UK's official athletic Web site. UK AD Mitch Barnhart said the deal “could enable us to ensure that our coaches don't go other places. It gives us flexibility in a lot of areas, I hope” (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 10/13). Host President & CEO Tom Stultz: “The university really created something new by bundling all these rights together. I'm hoping all of our other schools will want to do a similar bundling.” In Lexington, Jim Jordan reports Host and Gray will “set up a new entity called Wildcat Properties to manage the broadcast rights” received under the deal (LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER, 10/13).
