EXTREME GAMES, COMMERCIALISM TAKEN TOO FAR?
http://www.performanceresearch.com/espn-xgames-sponsorship.htm
This article analyzes the demographics sponsors and advertisers target during the xgames.Here's some statistics I found interesting:
66% of the audience was under 21 years old70% of the audience was male56% believe that the athletes are "people to look up to."91% believe its "a good reflection of today's youth"24% felt that it was "over commercialized"28% felt it was "too limited"46% felt the sponsers were "only trying to sell me something"57% said sponsorships did not increase their likelihood to purchase the advertised products32% of attendees reported that they would "almost always", or "frequently" select an X-Game sponsors product over a non-sponsor's product. This falls below nearly ever other sport tested.
"Although demographically the X-Games appear to be reaching the right target market, the strength of this sponsorship in influencing purchasing decisions have not been realized."
This article analyzes the demographics sponsors and advertisers target during the xgames.
Here's some statistics I found interesting:
66% of the audience was under 21 years old
70% of the audience was male
56% believe that the athletes are "people to look up to."
91% believe its "a good reflection of today's youth"
24% felt that it was "over commercialized"
28% felt it was "too limited"
46% felt the sponsers were "only trying to sell me something"
57% said sponsorships did not increase their likelihood to purchase the advertised products
32% of attendees reported that they would "almost always", or "frequently" select an X-Game sponsors product over a non-sponsor's product.
This falls below nearly ever other sport tested.
"Although demographically the X-Games appear to be reaching the right target market, the strength of this sponsorship in influencing purchasing decisions have not been realized."
RED BULL COLD RUSH
The link above is to the Red Bull Cold Rush website. The event attempts to get back to the sports roots of "free skiing" while at the same time rewarding them for their performance on the mountain. When the "free skiing" began there were no sponserships or cameras.
Although companies like Red Bull have helped progress extreme sports such as skiing and snowboarding, do you think that the at times excessive advertisements and sponserships are getting away from the sports grassroots?
http://www.burton.com/on/demandware.store/Sites-Burton_US-Site/default/Company-Show?cid=company-history
BURTON
http://www.burton.com/on/demandware.store/Sites-Burton_US-Site/default/Company-Show?cid=company-history
Here's a link to Burtons website in which in describes the history of Burton. One of the first snowboard compaines, Burton prides itself in the fact that it didn't sell out by still being provately family owned.
"Resisting the temptation to sell out... or go pubic or whatever... is probably the best thing we've done"- Burton
However, people still view Burton as corporate. Don't you think its crazy to call the person who pioneered the sport and invested so much in the sport corporate?
Nobody is stopping snowboarders from looking like NASCAR drivers, but riders choose not to.
Sponsors and Professional Athletes
Popular extreme sports athletes are notorious for their list of sponsors whom they represent/represent them. Shaun White, one of the most publicly decorated snowboarders of our time has a list of sponsors which include Burton, Target, Oakley, Ubisoft, Stride, BFGoodrich Tires, and Park City Mountain Resort. Athletes like White receive benefits from their sponsors in exchange for their representation of the brand and the use of their popularity for promotion. According to GrindTV, “From playboy playmates to Rolling Stone's pages, the Hollywood Hills to Olympic Halfpipes, Shaun has taken snowboarding and skateboarding and brought it to the top of the global podium. And Shaun is familiar with being at the top of the podium. In 2007, Shaun staked claim to some of the biggest wins of his career and moved himself and snowboarding into a whole new level of shredding!”With figures such as Shaun White gaining so much popularity in modern culture, it is no wonder that brands look to these figures to promote their products. Stride gum, for example, hopes that the public will see an advertisement for their gum with Shaun White and will be drawn to their gum the next time they are at the grocery store or in the gas station looking for something to chew. This mutually beneficial relationship between sponsor and athlete shows how important popularity and being recognizable is to selling a product.
http://www.grindtv.com/athlete/shaun-white/biography/
"Resisting the temptation to sell out... or go pubic or whatever... is probably the best thing we've done"- Burton
However, people still view Burton as corporate. Don't you think its crazy to call the person who pioneered the sport and invested so much in the sport corporate?
Nobody is stopping snowboarders from looking like NASCAR drivers, but riders choose not to.
Sponsors and Professional Athletes
Popular extreme sports athletes are notorious for their list of sponsors whom they represent/represent them. Shaun White, one of the most publicly decorated snowboarders of our time has a list of sponsors which include Burton, Target, Oakley, Ubisoft, Stride, BFGoodrich Tires, and Park City Mountain Resort. Athletes like White receive benefits from their sponsors in exchange for their representation of the brand and the use of their popularity for promotion. According to GrindTV, “From playboy playmates to Rolling Stone's pages, the Hollywood Hills to Olympic Halfpipes, Shaun has taken snowboarding and skateboarding and brought it to the top of the global podium. And Shaun is familiar with being at the top of the podium. In 2007, Shaun staked claim to some of the biggest wins of his career and moved himself and snowboarding into a whole new level of shredding!”With figures such as Shaun White gaining so much popularity in modern culture, it is no wonder that brands look to these figures to promote their products. Stride gum, for example, hopes that the public will see an advertisement for their gum with Shaun White and will be drawn to their gum the next time they are at the grocery store or in the gas station looking for something to chew. This mutually beneficial relationship between sponsor and athlete shows how important popularity and being recognizable is to selling a product.
http://www.grindtv.com/athlete/shaun-white/biography/
