• McCann finds more women clued in to world cup

    Jul 01, 2002

    Sunday's fever pitched football final was watched by more women than any previous World Cup final.

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    Jun 29, 2002

    As the Fifa World Cup heads for its grand finale tomorrow between perennial favourites Brazil and a determined German

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    Jun 29, 2002

    Nokia and Euro RSCG Worldwide have won a Gold Lion Direct for their Nokia Game campaign, developed by Euro RSCG Nethe

  • ESPN Classic Sport debuts in Italy next month

    Jun 28, 2002

    ESPN Classic Sport will make its debut in Italy on DTH digital satellite TELE + DIGITALE on 1 July.

  • ESPN Classic Sport debuts in Italy next month

    Submitted by ITV Production on Jun 28, 2002
    News Headline

    ESPN Classic Sport will make its debut in Italy on DTH digital satellite TELE + DIGITALE on 1 July. The new channel marks ESPN‘s first branded network initiative in Italy.
    Content will be tailored to the tastes of Italian sports fans and presented in Italian. The channel will concentrate on sports fare where the country had a major role to play, like Italy‘s victory in the 1982 World Cup over West Germany. Other highlights include the 1960 Rome Olympics, and boxing matches featuring Italians like Rocky Marciano, ‘Raging Bull‘ Jake La Motta, and Nino Benvenuti, says an official release.
    To complement its local programming, ESPN Classic Sport will also feature international sports including the FIFA World Cup Official Film collection, Tennis Grand Slam events and boxing matches featuring greats such as Muhammad Ali and George Foreman.

    ESPN Classic Sport made its European debut in France in March this year. ESPN Classic Sport is 70 per cent owned by ESPN Inc. and 30 per cent owned by Sports Capital Partners. TWI, the largest independent producer, packager, and distributor of sports programming in the world, plays a principal role in ESPN Classic Sport by providing a variety of support services to the venture, including production and facilities.

  • ESS gets the biggest cricket name of them all in Sachin as brand ambassador

    Submitted by ITV Production on Jun 27, 2002
    News Headline

    It‘s hotting up out there in the sports broadcasting arena. The latest card has been thrown by ESPN Star Sports (ESS) which today announced the signing of Indian cricketing icon Sachin Tendulkar onto his first ever exclusive TV channel contract.
    ESPN Software India managing director Manu Sawhney with Sachin Tendulkar at the signing ceremony in London announcing the batting maestro‘s exclusive TV channel contract with ESPN Star Sports.

    Under the three-year contract signed between WorldTel and ESPN Star Sports, Sachin will actively promote ESPN and Star Sports and join the channels on air in exclusive programming that will treat Indian cricket fans to Sachin in a new role on TV.

    Manu Sawhney, managing director of ESPN Software India Pvt. Ltd. said: "It is our constant endeavor to innovate, create and bring compelling sports content from around the world for the millions of our loyal viewers. I?m sure our long-term association with Sachin will immensely enhance the value we bring to our viewers and business partners."

    Queried as to the terms of the deal, Sawhney, speaking to indiantelevision.com over the phone from London, said it was a three-year contract that had a renewable clause built in and ESS expected that this was just the beginning of a long association.

    Sawhney would not comment on the payout to Sachin which industry sources have put at Rs 50 million a year, but stressed the deal was not just about endorsements. According to Sawhney, "Sachin will be partnering us in excellence as far as cricketing programming is concerned."

    Programming would be created with Sachin and around him, Sawhney said, adding it was an integrated and interactive approach that would include on-air, online, on ground and in print activity.

    Asked how long the programme rollout would take, Sawhney said the shows were still under conceptualisation but would be on air before the end of the year.

    The timing though, is what has has led to questions being asked as to whether the sports channel‘s choice of India‘s greatest cricketer ever as brand ambassador is a panic reaction to competition in the form of Ten Sports and SET Max which have got sports properties such as the World Cup Football, cricket tournaments in Morocco and ICC World Cup. Sawhney clarified that talks had been on with Sachin for the last six months and stressed it was not a knee jerk reaction to Sony‘s recent signing of Kapil Dev as its brand ambassador.

    When asked wasn‘t there a BCCI stipulation that disallows contracted players from participating in any sort of promotional activities while matches are on, Sawhney said: "We will make sure that we do not break any rules and will abide by all ICC guidelines."

    There‘s no denying that ESPN-Star Sports‘ has been losing its edge in programming with little high-profile sports properties to talk about. And it could possibly try to fill in the gaps by creative innovative funky programming featuring Sachin. A coaching show, exclusive down memory lane series on the genius who has been compared to Bradman, talk shows, ground events, and what have you are just some of the possibilities that arise.

    For programming to succeed with Sachin as the host however, ESPN Star Sports will have to groom him no end, especially in voice modulation, something which he is sorely lacking. There‘s no doubt that Tendulkar is one of the better dressers and lookers in India, but some of the sheen is lost when he speaks.

    There is some irony in that Tendulkar as ESS brand ambassador will be battling himself on the field as far as viewership is concerned when he is playing World Cup matches which will be viewed on SET MAX.

    So there it is. Sony Entertainment has Kapil Dev, the man who brought home the World Cup way back in 1983 squaring up against today‘s hero. Two greats, but who will prove the greater in the viewership stakes? No contest? The audience will have to decide.
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