Progressive has "signed on as the presenting sponsor" of WWE's "Friday Night SmackDown," which debuts on Fox on Oct. 4, according to Anthony Crupi of AD AGE. The deal was reached by Fox Sports Exec VP/Sports Sales Seth Winter, who said that sponsorship integrations "will play a significant role in Progressive's backing" of the show. He added that the in-show features are "likely to evolve over time." Pizza Hut, Boost Mobile, Snickers and Paramount also will have a presence on the show, and Winter said the sponsors will "have a significant presence in the show that goes beyond paid units." Winter did not disclose "what sort of ratings guarantees he's offering" advertisers. Fox also did not disclose the "average unit cost" for "SmackDown" ads, but the "lion's share of the units were sold during the upfront by Fox's entertainment sales team." Winter's team on the sports side "negotiated the sponsorships." Winter indicated that demand for "SmackDown" was "sufficient in recent months to bring into the fold 20 sponsors that had previously never bought time in a wrestling program" (ADAGE.com, 9/24).
