"Cavs rethink scorer’s table with ads in mind"

From SportsBusiness Journal

Review by Jordan Grudko in KIN 332 (section 1)

This article is about NBA team the Cleveland Cavaliers and their idea to make the scorer’s table, where the announcers, statisticians, and scoreboard operator sit, into three separate sections in order to maximize ad time on TV. The design is still pending league approval, but it will eliminate the 40 foot table they had last season and replace it with a 24 foot table in the middle of the court while there will be two eight foot tables near each team beach. The point of this is to allow more TV time to advertisements, and raise the prices for these advertisers to try and maximize profits.

In my opinion, this is a good idea from the Cavalier’s marketing department. It’s an easy and efficient way to get as much money as possible. Especially since the design will allow them to not only add more courtside seats, but also move them closer therefore charging more for those tickets as well. They can really raise prices a lot because basketball is played in a half-court set meaning the ads will be in view throughout a very large portion of the game. The Cavaliers are not the first team in the NBA to utilize this type of space, teams like the Boston Celtics and the New York Knicks have done similar things to maximize advertizing opportunities. Last season, The cavaliers averaged about 4,300 seconds a game of TV exposure for courtside sponsors, this season they are expecting to average around 5,000 seconds of TV exposure. This is important because it really means that courtside sponsorships, not courtside seats, are the biggest moneymakers in the NBA. Therefore, the Cavaliers decision is one that should make them plenty of extra money this season than in seasons past.

"Sponsors extend support to Paralympics"

From SportsBusiness Journal

Review by Ryan Dixon in SRM 334

The Paralympic Games have no been very popular since it first started in 1960. Not many people have known about it. To tell the truth, before having another SRM class this semester I did not even know what the Paralympic Games were. As I learned about it more I became interested in how it first began and what it is like today. With the article I chose it talks mostly about the sponsorship aspect of the organization. Over the past years there has not been much support to the games causing there to not have much money to host events. With the 2012 London Paralympics starting, this year they managed to get more support from many new sponsors. Some include Visa, Coca-Cola, and Samsung. With these sponsors they were able to advertise more and spread the word around about the Paralympics. Communication plays a big deal in this topic because not many people know about the Paralympics and with the sponsors that support the game also comes with advertising. With advertising there comes more recognition of the Paralympic Games. As people watch television there will be Coke commercials or Visa commercials that will say they support the games and then fans will be more informed about the games. Also with the Paralympics not being very popular over the past years they have only been able to air the videos on the Internet. There isn’t much coverage on television and with the games going on around the same time as college football and NFL starting to air on TV most TV stations wont want to cover it because not many people watch it and it will take away from viewers that they get daily. Overall I think the Paralympic games will become bigger over the years and people will be more interested in their stories and they diversity the athletes overcome while training for 4 years.

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Review by Dejor Simmons in SRM 334

Sales have increased in sponsorships for the London Paralympics. Many different sponsors have contributed like Visa, Samsung, McDonalds, Kodak, and Coke and totaled up to twenty-four. These sponsors may be the reason why a record number of two point five million tickets been sold. The enhanced coverage from commercials, print media, and the internet helped allow more viewers to watch Paralympics. Paralympics tickets sold out for most events in London weeks after the Olympics. Coming into the Paralympics, organizers’ goal was to sell more than 2.7 million tickets which would bring them close to 45 million pounds. That’s a big change since tickets in past years were given away if seats weren't filled but most tickets this year sold were 10 pounds or less.

The athletes themselves are also seeing an increase in revenue. Oscar Pistorius can expect 2 million dollars a year in endorsements like Nike and BT. That’s a lot less than Usain Bolt’s twenty million but its more than many able-bodied athletes will get. Businesses sponsoring both Olympics and Paralympics receive more than just logos on running tracks and swimming pools. Paralympics brings emotional connection even more than the connection that Olympics deliver. Mike Sharrock stated, “It’s not about selling more fuel. It’s a deeper, more values-based partnership.” Most demands came from companies trying to associate themselves with Paralympics after the success of the London Olympics. For the first time the Paralympics have a major sponsor in Sainsbury which paid 20 million pounds which did not sponsor the Olympics. IPC’s Greg Hartung said, “The appeal of the Games has grown alongside the public appeal and acceptance of Paralympic sport as a high performance sport.” First time broadcasting rights for Paralympics were sold to countries like Iran, Malaysia, Singapore, and Pakistan.

This relates to this course because Paralympics is a sport that really doesn’t get a lot of publicity or media coverage in the United States. With the enhancement of technology and sport communication there’s no reason why Paralympics shouldn’t be publicized more than what it is and maybe the new sponsors will help enhance it.

JMU Student Opportunity: Lacrosse Manager

The James Madison University Lacrosse team is looking to hire a team manager.  This would be a paid internship.  Freshman and sophomore level students are preferred.  Click here for more details.  

If interested in applying, please contact Samantha Eustace, Assistant Lacrosse Coach, at (540) 568-6326 or eustacsj@jmu.edu.