Links 04/19/10

Deals Yum! Brands Gets Naming Rights to New Louisville ArenaNissan replaces BMW as exclusive auto sponsor of O2 ArenaClydesdale Bank extends sponsorship deal with Scottish Premier LeagueVerizon taps Genesco for strategy, activation of #NFLTata Consulting Services aims for U.S. brand awareness w/ Marathon #Sponsorship DealsKaiser Permanente Teams With the Los Angeles Angels as Official Heal...

Grim Reapers Greet Runners at Dow Live Earth Run

Instead of cheering supporters, runners at the Dow Live Earth Run for Water in New York on Sunday were greeted by environmental activists. The skeleton-clad activists were on hand to protest Dow's event sponsorship, which some called a "greenwashing" attempt, in light of their ties to the Bhopal toxic chemicals leak. There are currently civil and criminal cases related to the disaster pending a...

Brita Activates BYOB Marathon

Makers of the Brita water filters have come up with a great way to eliminate bottled water -- sponsor a marathon. As part of its multi-year sponsorship of the BMO Vancouver Marathon, race officials will be asking participants to "bring your own bottle" and will serve Brita filtered water in biodegradable cups to the 14,000 expected participants at all water stations throughout the course. Brita...

Midnight Gaming Dials Up AT&T

Midnight Gaming Championship has tapped AT&T as the title sponsor for the 2010 national gaming tour, which will visit 20 cities between May and September. In addition to winning AT&T prizes, MGC will offer gamers opportunities to compete on AT&T mobile devices as well as Xbox and Wii consoles. "We're excited to work with AT&T to integrate new ideas and promotions into the Midn...

Kelly Clarkson Cigarette Sponsorship Under Fire

The FDA may be cracking down on tobacco promotions here in the U.S., but one D.C.-based lobbying group has hopes of influencing tobacco sponsorship abroad, as well. At issue is Indonesian cigarette brand, L.A. Lights, and the company's sponsorship of Kelly Clarkson's planned April 29th tour stop in Jakarta. Campaign For Tobacco-Free Kids has launched the website, TobaccoFreeIdol.org in protes...

Sponsorship Sales: Out with the Consultative Approach, In with Bidding?

About 10 years ago, I took up ceramics. The first class I took at one of the country's premier institutions, Philadelphia's The Clay Studio, host to the upcoming NCECA conference, was a hand-building course. I learned all sorts of techniques for creating pots, and the one I loved the most was using slabs of clay. Eventually, I began making tiles. To make a slab, you flatten a chunk of clay to ...

B-M Kicks Off Sponsor Comm Division with Some Engaging Social Media Dialogue

Breaking: social media is the now. Actually, it was the yesterday, the now and in all likelihood in some different form, the future. Check out this buzzwordy video from the kick-off event at Burston-Marsteller's brand new sponsorship communications division featuring WPP sister consultancy, IEG, and execs from Sony Ericsson and Team HTC Columbia. A common theme: engagement. In fact, so much so ...

Links 04/20/10

Deals Bing Sets Music Free with iPhone App #SponsorshipQualcomm to Sponsor Augmented Reality EventMidnight Gaming Championship Tour Dials Up AT&TMiller Lite pays $13K to #Louisville Transit Authority to sponsor free public transportation on Derby EveShell NASCAR sponsorship moving to Penske Next SeasonSamsung has opted to end its #NFL #sponsorship as marketing focus turns to entertainm...

Kelly Clarkson Responds to Sponsorship Controversy, Show Will Go On

American Idol star Kelly Clarkson responded in her blog today to the blogosphere's uproar over her upcoming performance in Jakarta, which will be sponsored by cigarette company, L.A. Lights. Calling it a "lose-lose situation," Clarkson says she won't cancel the date despite in "no way [being] an advocate for youth smoking." Here's her full statement: So ….my morning began with finding out ...

WNBA's Storm Look Beyond Sponsorship Fee For Bing Benefits

The Seattle Storm of the Women’s National Basketball Association today announced that Microsoft search engine, Bing, will receive placement on Storm jerseys and become the "official decision engine of the Storm." Bing will be the third company to sign a WNBA jersey sponsorship. While terms of the multi-year deal were not disclosed, Storm CEO Karen Bryant says the deal was about much more than ...