IRL Buys Their Time [Archive] - Off Camber Forums

trish

12-11-05, 01:18 PM

At least that's what David Poole says. Linky (http://www.thestate.com/mld/charlotte/sports/motorsports/13380924.htm?source=rss&channel=charlotte_sports)

FCYTravis

12-11-05, 01:26 PM

"I just pray the name Todd Harris doesn't come up. Harris was a total shill for the IRL on its broadcasts in 2005, and the network can certainly do far better."

:rofl:

theunions

12-11-05, 01:35 PM

I think David was actually being kind with that quote... :rofl:

KLang

12-11-05, 01:44 PM

'The IRL buys the time to air its races, other than the Indianapolis 500, and then sells its own ads.'

:eek: Can't wait to see the reaction from the 'media insider'. He has seen the contract you know. :laugh:

nrc

12-11-05, 01:46 PM

I've suspected this for a while now. My guess is that their Indy deal includes a rights fee for Indy and a discount rate for time buys on the rest of the schedule. They were probably doing ok with ad sales while Tony had the leverage to require the manufacturers to buy their quota of ad time, but it will be a challange with Chevy and Toytota gone.

dando

12-11-05, 02:30 PM

Night Train

12-11-05, 05:06 PM

I can't stand David Poole, but he's on the ball with this one.

oddlycalm

12-11-05, 06:41 PM

Good catch Trish. Like Richard, I've assumed this is the case, though this is the first time someone that's probably in a position to know (from the network people) has stated it. Stand back for the meltdown from what's left of the faithful.

oc

trish

12-11-05, 06:51 PM

I saw it posted at another forum. Just spreading the good news. :)

JLMannin

12-11-05, 08:47 PM

Since the IRL is doing everything that CART did, then the IPO is the next logical thing to do.

Andrew Longman

12-12-05, 10:36 AM

But I thought ABC was their broadcast partner. :gomer:

Wheel-Nut

12-12-05, 10:38 AM

But I thought ABC was their broadcast partner. :gomer:

They are, the two parties meet at the bank every Monday morning.

Andrew Longman

12-12-05, 10:57 AM

Lordy, has this ever created a smoking hole over at TF.

Kinda reminds me of debating the definition of "Is"

When is a time buy not really a time buy?

cart7

12-12-05, 10:05 PM

This just in.....

The irl is not buying time according to the writer, David Poole. He fibbed. :gomer:

EDwardo

12-12-05, 10:43 PM

fourrunner

12-12-05, 11:14 PM

So in Fact then the Fools at ABC waste $15,000,000.00 per year on nothing!

No wonder they're at the bottom of the Television Heap!! :eek:

cart7

12-12-05, 11:44 PM

Someone figured out that Fox/NBC has been spending approximately 16 million per Nascar race for the rights to broadcast. Using that figure as a benchmark to judge others and since Indy is the only irl race that even comes close or matches your typical cup race ratings, then I'd say ABC/ESPN is basically buying the rights to Indy and spending nothing on the rest. Of course, even at nothing, with their pathetic ratings I figure ABC is probably breaking even on the deal at best.

trish

12-13-05, 11:53 AM

David Poole issues a retraction. http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/sports/13394481.htm

trauma1

12-13-05, 12:08 PM

it was more of the inadation of e-mails from the crackforum crowd, notice he wasn't to happy about it, and they are proud of it :thumdown:

Don Quixote

12-13-05, 12:20 PM

David Poole issues a retraction. http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/sports/13394481.htm

What a huge victory for the gomers. :gomer:

trish

12-13-05, 12:29 PM

So, according to Poole, the previous deal was for $13 million a year. BUT, the Indy 500 alone is worth $15 million a year or more as a stand alone event. Doesn't add up to me.

dando

12-13-05, 12:44 PM

What a huge victory for the gomers. :gomer:
Trying to prove which is the tallest dwarf. :gomer: :laugh:

-Kevin

Accipiter

12-13-05, 12:44 PM

So in Fact then the Fools at ABC waste $15,000,000.00 per year on nothing!

No wonder they're at the bottom of the Television Heap!! :eek:

Actually, I believe NBC is at the bottom of the heap. Not that anyone with a brain in their head would credit the IRL for the success of Desperate Housewives, or NASCAR for the declining favor of NBC.

Andrew Longman

12-13-05, 06:28 PM

So, according to Poole, the previous deal was for $13 million a year. BUT, the Indy 500 alone is worth $15 million a year or more as a stand alone event. Doesn't add up to me.

Add to that the fact that Toyota, Honda, Chevy, Firestone and others are obligated to buy ad inventory in exchange for their participation (just as Ford and Bridgestone do for CCWS).

How is that a qualitative difference?

Reading Poole's retraction he seems perplexed and annoyed by the onslaught of fury he stirred up and simply said "whatever, if you don't what to call that a time buy then don't". His central point is still important in that racefans will not be seeing a similar treatment of NASCAR advertisers by ESPN as they do IRL advertisers.

On a related not I have noticed that the IRL does not do the split screen for all ads. When it is a promo for an ABC show, they cut away as well as for some other ads. Always wondered what the criteria was.

eiregosod

12-13-05, 06:59 PM

it was more of the inadation of e-mails from the crackforum crowd, notice he wasn't to happy about it, and they are proud of it :thumdown:

Poole foretold the apolcalypse to crackforum! :rofl:

fourrunner

12-13-05, 07:31 PM

I think Poole was more upset that half the E-Mails from the guys at Crackforum were "hitting on Him" ;)

nrc

12-13-05, 09:25 PM

Tomato/tomato - it still amounts to buying time. They're getting less than they would get for Indy alone because they're selling the whole thing as a package.

Brickman

12-13-05, 11:14 PM

Tomato/tomato - it still amounts to buying time. They're getting less than they would get for Indy alone because they're selling the whole thing as a package.

That's a new one. The 500 would get more than the 13 million they get now?
I suppose if NASCAR gets an average of 15 million a show, that the 500 could fetch the same. Ratings at least were higher this year.

nrc

12-13-05, 11:35 PM

That's a new one. The 500 would get more than the 13 million they get now?
I suppose if NASCAR gets an average of 15 million a show, that the 500 could fetch the same. Ratings at least were higher this year.

Unless there is now less value in being "The Network of The Indianapolis 500" than being "The Network of The USG Sheetrock 400", yes.

I lost interest in keeping track of the details a while back. It's enough to know that Tony George has no business running a Quickmart, let alone racing series. Are we at the point where the average NASCAR race is more valueable than "The greatest spectacle in racing"?

Brickman

12-14-05, 12:05 AM

Unless there is now less value in being "The Network of The Indianapolis 500" than being "The Network of The USG Sheetrock 400", yes.

I lost interest in keeping track of the details a while back. It's enough to know that Tony George has no business running a Quickmart, let alone racing series. Are we at the point where the average NASCAR race is more valueable than "The greatest spectacle in racing"?

In package deal a NASCAR race is more valuable than the 500. Individually I would say their best beats out the 500.

It would be interesting to see where the pecking order of highest to lowest rated and where they all fell. But I have no doubt that open wheel would be at the bottom, except for the 500.

SurfaceUnits

12-14-05, 12:57 AM

Danica Patrick and a bunch of guys you never heard of who beat her every weekend
NASCAR just signed an 8-year TV deal with FOX, ESPN/ABC and TNT worth more than $4B. Good for them. Meanwhile, the Indy Racing League is trying to put a PR spin on its TV ratings for last year. You know the IRL, those are the races with . The IRL had seven televised races last year and they boast about the 50% increase in their average rating up to 2.0. That‘s better than your typical infomercial or WNBA game, but don‘t look too deeply into the numbers here. You see, the Indy 500 got a rating of 6.9 and the other six events averaged below 1.0. As with most sports, there is the varsity and there is the junior varsity...
(SportsFan Magazine,MD)
But don't get me wrong, I love sports...
By
The Sports Curmudgeon

http://www.sportsfanmagazine.com/sfm/topic.html?id=650

SurfaceUnits

12-14-05, 01:19 AM

And this Info Just In

ESPN: Screw Your Schedule! We Want Danica Patrick!
By
SportsFan Magazine
Posted: August 16, 2005 9:08AM

When television says "jump," professional racing leagues have been quick to respond, "Where, when, and how high?"

And for NASCAR, it's one of the reasons for its huge success.

Now it's the Indy Racing League's turn, as ESPN has some friendly advice for a league it thinks could be the Next Big Thing in the sports world.

From Indystar.com:

A top ESPN executive paid a rare visit to the Indy Racing League last weekend at Kentucky Speedway. He was armed with suggestions.
For the 2006 season and beyond, Mark Shapiro, the cable sports network's executive vice president of programming and production, wants to see more of a marketing emphasis on rookie sensation Danica Patrick, additional night races and no event in Japan.
Shapiro, who also leads sports programming on ABC, would also prefer a more compact schedule.
"Ratings are up 38 percent on ABC and money can't buy the attention the sport got at the Indianapolis 500," Shapiro said Sunday following a meeting with league officials. "We must capitalize on it."
Shapiro said the IRL lost an opportunity to do that this year by not racing the weekend after Patrick's stirring fourth-place finish in the 500. He said having Indy-car races on consecutive weekends during the summer would give the television partner the opportunity to keep the attention on the sport, one of the benefits to NASCAR's growth.
"We'll be there with this (sport) when we start the season in April and end it on Labor Day," Shapiro said. "And we can't take weeks off, especially coming out of the Indy 500 with all its momentum.
"It's like in cycling or rowing: When the wind's at your back, that's not the time to rest. That's when you push harder."
An April start to the season would avoid conflict with the NCAA men's basketball tournament. Finishing in early September would lessen the shadow of the NFL.
IRL officials are trying to oblige, part of the reason the 2006 schedule has not yet been finalized

EDwardo

12-17-05, 12:49 PM

Lets see if we get an answer!

Your Question:
David poole stated in his December 11th column that the IRL buys time from ABC to air its races. This has created quite a controversy in racing forums. Is it true?

EDwardo, Kansas City Missouri 12/12/2005

http://www.thatsracin.com/mld/thatsracin/directory/qa_forum.html

I got my answer and it has some interesting wording!
http://www.thatsracin.com/mld/thatsracin/directory/qa_forum.html?forumId=837

Q: David poole stated in his December 11th column that the IRL buys time from ABC to air its races. This has created quite a controversy in racing forums. Is it true?
EDwardo, Kansas City Missouri 12/12/05
A: From David Poole: No, it's not true. The IRL got about $15 million a year in its last contract, which ran throught 2005 but was extended through 2009 this year. No financial terms of the extension were announced. Clearly, the Indianapolis 500 is worth at least $15 million per year in television rights (NASCAR will average about that per Nextel Cup race in its new deal), so without the Indy 500 the IRL would find itself in largely the same boat that ChampCar is in. ChampCar does buy time to air its races.
Jim Utter 12/16/05