From Athletic Management
Review by Jordan Fields in KIN 332 (Section 1)
Syracuse University has been known for both their athletic and academic standards. Though lately their athletics have been less productive then what the school has been use to in the past, Syracuse University is still making headlines. Like every college in the nation with a sports program, SU has trademarked many different aspects of their proud school. SU has trademarked everything from their famous mascot Otto the Orange to the nicknames of their players the “Orangemen” and “Orangewomen”, they even trademarked their stadium names. Now SU is going through a legal debate on whether or not they can trademark the word “Orange” as it deals with clothing and other merchandise. The issue here is that the word orange is so vastly used in other major and minor collegiate programs. For instance a few schools that were discussed in the journal I found were programs such as, Boise State University, University of Florida, and the University of Tennessee. These programs were discussed in the article due to how intertwined they are with the color orange. These teams were worried and I believe rightfully so, if SU was to be successful in acquiring the desired trademark then it could drastically affect the marketing of these teams. These teams use the word orange a lot in retail and in promotions. The answer to this problem was a co-existence agreement. Though the details of the agreement are uncertain, they are currently being worked out. The idea of a trademark is to insure that there is no confusion on the origin of an idea or object. Syracuse’s main reason for the trademarking of the word “Orange” is solely to prevent the sale of unlicensed or unofficial products using the schools nickname. This trademark, however, would not stop other schools from being able to use it in accordance with their own programs. This was one of the terms agreed upon due to how unlikely it would be that customers would mistake Syracuse for their school. George McGuire, who is the attorney handling legal issues with the school’s case, states that this agreement only re-affirms each school’s rights to use the word “Orange” as it had before and that colleges which are not part of the agreement will also be able to continue to use the word as it relates to their programs. This agreement will also apply to high school programs, as long as no connection to Syracuse is made through the word “Orange”. I think it should be passed in favor for SU, the only people being harmed by this are people selling the unlicensed products. It has no real affect on any other schools and it will help generate more revenue for Syracuse. They are only looking to stop the unlicensed sale of items with the school’s nickname. Being that it is their nickname, I feel as though they should have the right to protect it.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
"Conference realignment: An ESPN conference?"
From ksl.com
Review by Chad Byers in KIN 332 (Section 1)
The uncertainty in college football has caused a giant conference realignment and has showed what college football has become—a giant cash-cow where every party has a substantial amount of greed.
This greed stems primarily off of multi-million dollar tv contracts which is split throughout the conference. The foreseeable end of the Big 12 shows the obvious problem with uneven revenue shares in a conference. The creation of the Longhorn Network angered so many of its members that the conference will most likely split in the near future.
But the Longhorn Network has opened up doors to ESPN that few have realized. This ESPN affiliate network has essentially taken out the middle man (conferences) and now there is a direct revenue line between ESPN and Texas. If this tool was used correctly it could mean an increased profit stream for both parties to gain from. The article Conference realignment: An ESPN conference? tells of the behind the scenes conversations that are going on with ESPN and universities that have the capabilities of sustaining their own private network. This network would enable the universities to get more national recognition through coverage on ESPN networks. Also would generate more revenue because they would not have to split TV contracts throughout a 12-team conference.
Furthermore this would generate a higher profit line for ESPN because they would lose a substantial part of overhead costs by essentially outsourcing their network to each universities own network. There are 5 premiere BCS schools that already have a network or capabilities to operate on on campus. Texas of course has already created one. Oklahoma just spent 5 million dollars creating an HD soonervision facility, with HD and fiber optic cords. Penn State, Notre Damn, and BYU all have small satellite networks that could easily be adapted into an ESPN affiliate. Many schools have these small in house networks; Liberty University even has one at the FCS level.
The combination of ESPN and independent schools united together could eventually be the end of the BCS. It would destroy the formula of the BCS—since the formula of the BCS is primarily predicated off of conference structures. The strength of conference is very important, notice that an SEC team has been in the national championship for the last 5 years.
Just as every other scenario trying to predict what is going on this is just a scenario but a very realistic scenario that no one is thinking about. The reason that this theory is not more prevalent is simple—why would ESPN (the only source of sporting information) talk about this possibility until it actually comes to fruition.
Review by Chad Byers in KIN 332 (Section 1)
The uncertainty in college football has caused a giant conference realignment and has showed what college football has become—a giant cash-cow where every party has a substantial amount of greed.
This greed stems primarily off of multi-million dollar tv contracts which is split throughout the conference. The foreseeable end of the Big 12 shows the obvious problem with uneven revenue shares in a conference. The creation of the Longhorn Network angered so many of its members that the conference will most likely split in the near future.
But the Longhorn Network has opened up doors to ESPN that few have realized. This ESPN affiliate network has essentially taken out the middle man (conferences) and now there is a direct revenue line between ESPN and Texas. If this tool was used correctly it could mean an increased profit stream for both parties to gain from. The article Conference realignment: An ESPN conference? tells of the behind the scenes conversations that are going on with ESPN and universities that have the capabilities of sustaining their own private network. This network would enable the universities to get more national recognition through coverage on ESPN networks. Also would generate more revenue because they would not have to split TV contracts throughout a 12-team conference.
Furthermore this would generate a higher profit line for ESPN because they would lose a substantial part of overhead costs by essentially outsourcing their network to each universities own network. There are 5 premiere BCS schools that already have a network or capabilities to operate on on campus. Texas of course has already created one. Oklahoma just spent 5 million dollars creating an HD soonervision facility, with HD and fiber optic cords. Penn State, Notre Damn, and BYU all have small satellite networks that could easily be adapted into an ESPN affiliate. Many schools have these small in house networks; Liberty University even has one at the FCS level.
The combination of ESPN and independent schools united together could eventually be the end of the BCS. It would destroy the formula of the BCS—since the formula of the BCS is primarily predicated off of conference structures. The strength of conference is very important, notice that an SEC team has been in the national championship for the last 5 years.
Just as every other scenario trying to predict what is going on this is just a scenario but a very realistic scenario that no one is thinking about. The reason that this theory is not more prevalent is simple—why would ESPN (the only source of sporting information) talk about this possibility until it actually comes to fruition.
"Upgrades push JMU to top of FCS"
From The Associated Press
Review by Miranda Brewer in KIN 332 (Section 1)
After being away at an internship all summer, James Madison linebacker Pat Williams was in awe at the sight of the new stadium. “It was kind of overwhelming,” said Williams. The new stadium is now the biggest in the Colonial Athletic Association, with new heights in expectations to match. The Dukes have not been back to the playoffs since the semifinal loss to Montana in 2008, but they are expected to finish second in the conference this year. In regards to the stadium itself, head coach Mickey Matthews says the renovations on the home sideline give it an “SEC” feel. The new stadium holds 25,000 people, which is approximately 10,000 more than it did before. Athletic director Jeff Bourne says the next phase of upgrades would increase capacity to around 40,000. Bourne shrugged off the assumption that the expansion is the foundation for a move into the Football Bowl Subdivision. "I-A is really not on the radar screen at this point," he said. "The bottom line is to be the absolute best program in the FCS right now, head to toe."
Marketing comes into play in this article when it talks about the VIP areas. There is a club level on the third floor of the stadium and VIP suites on the fourth. These areas pour money into the university with $200 per club level seat, and as much as $4,500 per suite per game. The first game was almost completely sold out, mostly thanks to the JMU marketing team and their “25K Strong” campaign. The campaign was an effort to fill the stadium for the Dukes’ first home game on September 10, 2011.
Review by Miranda Brewer in KIN 332 (Section 1)
After being away at an internship all summer, James Madison linebacker Pat Williams was in awe at the sight of the new stadium. “It was kind of overwhelming,” said Williams. The new stadium is now the biggest in the Colonial Athletic Association, with new heights in expectations to match. The Dukes have not been back to the playoffs since the semifinal loss to Montana in 2008, but they are expected to finish second in the conference this year. In regards to the stadium itself, head coach Mickey Matthews says the renovations on the home sideline give it an “SEC” feel. The new stadium holds 25,000 people, which is approximately 10,000 more than it did before. Athletic director Jeff Bourne says the next phase of upgrades would increase capacity to around 40,000. Bourne shrugged off the assumption that the expansion is the foundation for a move into the Football Bowl Subdivision. "I-A is really not on the radar screen at this point," he said. "The bottom line is to be the absolute best program in the FCS right now, head to toe."
Marketing comes into play in this article when it talks about the VIP areas. There is a club level on the third floor of the stadium and VIP suites on the fourth. These areas pour money into the university with $200 per club level seat, and as much as $4,500 per suite per game. The first game was almost completely sold out, mostly thanks to the JMU marketing team and their “25K Strong” campaign. The campaign was an effort to fill the stadium for the Dukes’ first home game on September 10, 2011.
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