Speedway Vs Network

[MountaineerTom]

From Speedvision.com

 

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Business met business head-on, with no prospect of a friendly ending.

 

Officials of Lowe's (Charlotte) Motor Speedway learned Saturday morning that NBC/TNT, televising networks for this weekend's NASCAR events, would not refer to the track as "Lowe's" during its broadcasts, including the Winston Cup qualifying show Thursday night. The announcers Thursday simply said words to the effect, "We're here in Charlotte."

 

Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse has a 10-year deal for naming rights to the speedway under an arrangement which began in 1999. The Charlotte track is the only one on the NASCAR circuit with a naming rights agreement.

 

As the conflict escalated, speedway officials pulled tow trucks up to the compound enclosing NBC's satellite trucks, threatening to pull them off the lot.

 

Officials from the networks and the speedway reportedly met on the seventh floor of Smith Tower, the Speedway's on-site office complex, in efforts to resolve the situation before the Busch race started. A Speedway spokesman told speedvision.com, "Essentially, what we've told them is that we will not permit them to continue the broadcast until they give us assurance the facility will be called by its legal name."

 

The Busch race started after a 2hr10min and is being aired live by TNT – with the tow trucks still hooked up to the networks' two satellite trucks. The announcers continue not to call Lowe's Motor Speedway by name.

 

The television contracts were negotiated by NASCAR and the networks, with payouts to the tracks and into the purse. It is not known whether NASCAR or Lowe's were involved in the negotiations.

 

Fox Sports and the Speedway discussed this matter in May before the Coca Cola 600 weekend, and the network voiced no objections to calling the facility Lowe's Motor Speedway.

[Kansas Kid]

WTF is NBC trying to prove here?  :stupid:   I can't see why simply saying Lowes Motor Speedway is something to cause all of this fuss.  I hope that Humpy will take his wreckers and haul those worthless NBC/TNT satellite trailers off the grounds.  The fans would absolutely hate NBC (which alot already do) and they might try to improve their coverage to kind of make up for such an incident.  

[MountaineerTom]

I think it has to do with what NBC would see as "free advertising" by mentioning Lowe's, but not getting any money for it themselves.  A bunch of BS in my opinion.

[Guest Friz]

NBC may prove a small point as far as "advertising" goes. All I know is that if I don't see that race, someone is gonna get hurt.

[Kansas Kid]

Quote from Friz, posted on Oct. 06 2001,9:58

NBC may prove a small point as far as "advertising" goes. All I know is that if I don't see that race, someone is gonna get hurt.

 

Oh yeah, I will agree with that.  There would be millions of PO'd people.

[burgundyz71]

I wish ESPN was still covering the races!!!!!!

[MountaineerTom]

Quote from polxc5, posted on Oct. 07 2001,00:42

I wish ESPN was still covering the races!!!!!!

 

Same here.

[General Lee 01]

What I've heard is, Lowes was supposed to pay NBC  to air Lowes commercials, but they didn't. So I guess NBC "figured" since they didn't pay em', they don't deserve to have their name mentioned on TV for nothing.

 

 

I've had my own opinion on this since it became "LMS". But, I'll keep it to myself this time.