Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.ads From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: ads Fri, Jul 24 1992 Date: Fri, 24 Jul 92 04:47:16 EDT Message-ID: 07-24 0000 DECISIONLINE: Advertising USA TODAY Update July 24-26, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network OLYMPIC AD TIME IS AVAILABLE: NBC still has unsold advertising time for the Olympic Games. It is offering discounted ads to new advertisers and free spots to larger buyers. Larry Hoffner, NBC's executive vice president of sales, was quoted Thursday as saying the network was "mopping up," but did confirm that big advertisers are getting a few free spots. NETWORK HOPES FOR $500M: NBC paid $401 million for rights to the Barcelona Games and is spending about $100 million more on production. The network is hoping to get back $500 million in ad revenues. It is airing 161 hours of coverage, all taped except for the men's basketball final. NBC has guaranteed advertisers a 15.3 rating. The New York Times reported the network has sold between 96% and 97% of ad time. COKE CENTERS ON GAMES: Coca-Cola has made the Olympics the centerpiece of its marketing strategy - and it paid top dollar, an estimated $33 million, to do so. When NBC's Olympic preview airs Friday night, viewers will see the first wave of Coke's barrage: More than 100 ads will run during the 16-day event, making Coke the largest TV advertiser. Each night, Coke will show its ads from other countries. COKE STRESSES GLOBAL SALES: What Coca-Cola wants to emphasize with its more than 100 Olympics ads is the global dominance of the company. Coke commands a slight lead over Pepsi Cola in U.S. sales, but it outsells Pepsi four to one worldwide. Randy Travis and Natalie Cole will introduce the ads with the slogan "Shared around the world." ATHLETES APPEAR MARKETABLE: The next endorsement winners from the Barcelona Games will not be decided until the Games end Aug. 7. But marketers have some early favorites: Basketball's Christian Laettner for his "baby face and rough edge"; decathlete Dave Johnson, now a household name from Reebok's pre-Olympic ads; wrestler Chris Campbell; runner Suzy Hamilton; swimmer Summer Sanders; and long-jumper Mike Powell. TRIPLECAST GETS CHEAPER: By Saturday, NBC's pay-per-view Triplecast will be available through local cable TV operators. Unlike pay-per-view events such as pro boxing, where prices go up for late orders, Triplecast viewers save by ordering from their cable operators because they escape the $10 service fee charged on orders made through NBC's national toll-free number. SARA LEE SIGNS ON: Sara Lee became the second company to sign up with the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games. The Chicago company paid $40 million last week to be a "national partner" in the 1996 Atlanta Games. The first-time sponsor was promised more promotional opportunities and protection from ambush. CHANNEL ONE GETS OK IN R.I.: A bill which allows Channel One into the Rhode Island public schools for the first time has been passed into law. The state law allows for the display of electronic news or educational programming supported by commercial advertising. Channel One is a 12-minute ad-supported news program designed to make world news relevant to teen-agers. It currently reaches 7 million teen-agers. GEIER CHAIRS SESSION: Philip H. Geier Jr., chairman and CEO of the Interpublic Group of Companies, will chair the opening session of the International Advertising Association's World Congress, Sept. 28-30 in Barcelona, Spain. Joe Cappo, senior vice president of Crain Communications and publishing director of Advertising Age, will speak on the future structure of the advertising industry during the conference. YARBROUGH NEW ADVOCATE CHIEF: Jeff Yarbrough has been named editor in chief of The Advocate, a biweekly news magazine for homosexuals. Yarbrough, who joined the 25-year-old magazine (circulation 10,000) as a senior editor in February, succeeds Richard Rouilard. Yarbrough was a contributing editor for Interview before joining The Advocate. He has written for People and Premierand was a TV producer for Fox Broadcasting. CENTURY 21 MAKES CHANGES: Home buyers and sellers may have noticed a new look recently at Century 21, the USA's largest real-estate brokerage. In response to a consumer survey last year, Century 21 has updated a few of its trademark symbols. The company is using a lighter shade of gold for its jackets; gold and black replace gold and brown as the official colors; and many franchises are "modernizing" their offices. DOT ENDS DUMMY AGREEMENT: The Department of Transportation said Wednesday that it would end a marketing agreement with Tyco Toys to produce doll versions of the crash dummies that appear in seat-belt public service commercials. The deal was meant to be temporary to limit confusion between the dummies Vince and Larry, which speak to adults, and the doll dummies Crash and Spin. Advertising Editor: Kate Coughlin. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM