Just a thought from the Right Coast,
I live just down the street from the Joe Gibbs operation in the
Huntersville Business park. The park would make a very good location with easy
access to the teams and other needs. HuMM Nascar taking over the Speedvision
Network, that would be a shame. I enjoy all forms of motorsports and
Speedvision has filled this very well!!!
Pat Collins
EP 33 510 Solo II / Sportsmen Drag Racing
Huntersville,NC
-----Original Message-----
From: Murray, Matthew D. [SMTP:MDMURRAY@gwns.com]
Sent: Friday, June 29, 2001 10:36 AM
To: Teamdotnet; Porsche Racing; Porsche General; Porsche944 main list post;
Porsche 911 post; NER Solo posting; Evo Posting
Subject: FW: Speedvision to become NASCAR channel
Chris:
I'd suspect this is just "talk", but there is probably some truth to it,
too.
That being said, in the July 2nd issue of AutoWeek that I received
yesterday,
there is an article on NASCAR on TV (pg. 49) that says Fox will be working
on
the "evolution of Speedvision into a NASCAR channel". . .
The Charlotte newspapers have had a few articles about Fox looking for space
in the past week.
Matt Murray
mattm@optonline.net
-------------------------------------------------------------------
MM, any truth to this horror?!?
Chris
-----------------
Check this from the Business Journal:
Sports network needs home for new NASCAR effort
Erik Spanberg Senior Staff Writer
Fox Sports has quietly begun scouting Charlotte-area sites for its
proposed NASCAR cable network headquarters, eyeing a February launch
coinciding with the Daytona 500.
Area real estate sources say Fox wants as much as 50,000 square feet
to house the network. Target sites include Huntersville Business
Park, home to Joe Gibbs Racing and other teams, and Twin Lakes
Business Park.
"It certainly would make sense (to have a Charlotte headquarters)
from a lot of perspectives," says Paul Brooks, NASCAR vice president
of broadcasting.
"Because so many drivers and teams are in that area, it would make
producing and creating the shows much easier."
Brooks says the presence of Charlotte-based NASCAR Images, an
archival video source, also works in the area's favor. NASCAR Images
is jointly owned by NASCAR and Fox.
The idea for a NASCAR network began two years ago, when the stock-car
sanctioning body completed a $2.8 billion broadcast contract with Fox
and NBC/Turner. That deal began this year. With viewership at an all-
time high, Fox and NASCAR executives have again turned their
attention to starting a cable channel.
The plan is to convert Speedvision, an existing cable network reaching
41 million households, to the NASCAR Channel. By comparison, The Golf
Channel, launched in 1995, reaches 37 million homes.
A name hasn't been selected, but it is expected to include NASCAR.
NASCAR has already licensed its name to Fox for a motorsports cable
channel.
Fox parent News Corp. owns a third of Speedvision and is negotiating
for an 80% stake with other shareholders.
David Hill, Fox Sports chairman, says the deal should be finished by
August.
"We haven't finished the acquisition yet," Hill says. "I don't think
the ink's dry on the paper until August so we can't do anything yet.
We're doing a heck of a lot of planning."
Industry experts say the revamped Speedvision will emphasize NASCAR
while incorporating other forms of racing and automotive collectors'
shows.
Speedvision generates $75 million per year in revenue, with annual
advertising gains of 40% to 50% the past five years. It became
profitable last year.
_____________
List Sponsor: http://www.netsville.com
|