It remains unknown if Verizon "will return as the IndyCar Series' title sponsor when its contract expires" after the '18 season, but Hulman & Co. CEO Mark Miles' "primary concern right now is securing the circuit's television future," according to Jim Ayello of the INDIANAPOLIS STAR. Once a TV deal is completed, Miles can "present Verizon -- and any other potential title sponsor -- with an enhanced understanding of the benefits of doing business with IndyCar." Miles said, "It’s not beyond the pale to think that we might be able to integrate sponsorship with television. And that conversation is further along." Ayello notes many connect Verizon’s potential departure to the company's "change in senior leadership," and IndyCar is "preparing for the possibility of finding a new title sponsor." Miles plans to have a "good handle on IndyCar’s value in the marketplace, but he also has other ideas for title sponsorship." One that is "particularly interesting is selling title sponsorship to the broadcaster that lands the series’ TV rights." Broadcasters could "offer multifaceted advertising packages to sponsors that could included title sponsorship, commercials and signage around the track." Miles' goal is to "strike a domestic TV deal with one provider rather than continuing to oscillate between networks as the series has this season on NBCSN and ABC." In considering prospective TV partners, Miles is "looking well beyond the traditional players" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 7/21). Miles said that renewal talks with Verizon, which is paying around $10M annually, will "begin soon." Miles: "This is a conversation that will start in earnest soon -- and that we’ll have some clarity on before long." SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL's Adam Stern notes Miles is hopeful of a renewal but "conceded the 'very significant change' in Verizon management since the two sides originally struck the multiyear deal" in '14 (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 7/17 issue).
