Sony Dropping Title Sponsorship Of Miami's ATP/WTA Event After Eight Years

Sony is out after eight years as the title sponsor of Miami's joint ATP/WTA tournament, the third largest tennis event in the U.S. Tournament Senior VP/Marketing & TV Wendy Elkin in an e-mail wrote, “Sony has opted out of their title renewal but may still be connected with the Miami event.” However, Elkin indicated the tournament, staged in March and owned by William Morris Endeavor/IMG, is close to finding a new title sponsor. Sony began its title sponsorship of the event in '07 while still branded as Sony Ericsson and took over as sole title sponsor in '13. Meanwhile, Fila also is out as official apparel and sneaker of the Miami event. A source close to Fila said the tournament, now being called the Miami Open, was seeking to triple its annual $300,000 fee for the category.