CBS Sees $540 Mln In TV Ad Sales For Olympics
NEW YORK (Reuter) - A top CBS executive said Monday he expects the network to sell about $540 million in advertising for its broadcast of the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, about 50 percent above sales during the 1994 winter games.
Joe Abruzzese, president of network TV sales, said in an interview that CBS has sold about $500 million to date for the two-week TV schedule.
"We're 93 percent toward goal," he said.
The network sold about $360-$370 million for 1994 winter games in Lillehammer, Norway.
The network said it has sold advertising to about 35 companies versus about 90 advertisers during the 1994 games.
"Clients have bought a bigger piece of the category," he said. While in 1994, AT&T Corp, Sprint Corp and MCI Communications Corp all advertised, AT&T chose to buy up the category for the 1998 games.
Abruzzese said one advertiser, which he would not identify, bought a $20 million package last week.
The advertisers for 1998 "did not want to be bitten away by competitors," he noted. "They said, 'It's more important for me to block these guys out.' They wanted to protect the (Olympic) rings."
Abruzzese said he expected U.S. movie studios to buy at least $20 million to promote their early 1998 releases.
I wonder how this makes the Seven Network feel? Of course we are talking chalk and cheese but, even on the economy of scale, that's a lot of dollars. You think there's a lesson to be learned here?
