Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Nextel agrees to sponsor LV monorail station

From: [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 17 Nov 2003 16:20:29 -0500

Today: November 17, 2003 at 11:21:23 PST 

Nextel agrees to sponsor LV monorail station
By Richard N. Velotta 

LAS VEGAS SUN

Nextel Communications Inc. is pressing to be one of the most 
recognized name brands in the world, following its sponsorship of 
the NASCAR auto racing title with a deal to put its name on the high-
profile monorail station at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Nextel, a Fortune 300 wireless communications company serving 293 of 
the top 300 U.S. markets, also will sponsor a four-car monorail 
train. Reston, Va.-based Nextel and the Las Vegas Monorail Co. will 
announce the sponsorship agreement in an event at the station 
Tuesday morning.

Nextel is the third corporate sponsor to sign on with the monorail 
and the first to sponsor one of the seven stations on the 3.8-mile 
route.

Representatives of Nextel and Las Vegas Monorail would not confirm 
what the communications company is paying for the sponsorship, but 
published sources said it is paying $50 million over 12 years for 
the station deal.

The monorail track is complete and trains are being tested along the 
length of the route, from the Sahara hotel-casino on the north to 
the MGM Grand hotel-casino on the south. The system is scheduled to 
begin passenger service in the first quarter of 2004.

Nextel will turn the Convention Center monorail station, located 
above Desert Inn Road at Paradise Road, into a giant advertisement 
for the company. The company will use 15,000 square feet of the 
station as "an immersive, themed environment highlighting the 
industry's latest digital wireless communications solutions," said a 
statement on the sponsorship.

The company is enthused that its brand will be visible to millions 
of business travelers, since the Convention Center station is 
expected to be one of the line's busiest.

"This station gives customers and prospects a chance to experience 
the Nextel brand in both a hands-on and visible way," said Mark 
Schweitzer, senior vice president of marketing at Nextel. "We're 
very excited about the opportunity this brings to Nextel to spread 
our message as the premier business communications tool for business 
doers. We're equally proud to partner with the Las Vegas Monorail 
Co. and the Las Vegas Convention Center to execute this powerful 
branding, sales and service concept."

The station will be manned with Nextel employees to talk about 
company products and there will be interactive displays providing 
information about phones, wireless data technology and business 
applications.

The station also will have a lounge, concierge services, a Nextel 
business theater, an open-air balcony with views of the Strip and 
access to the convention center and the monorail trains.

"Nextel's commitment to Las Vegas further substantiates that our 
city offers much more than just the weekend getaway," said Manny 
Cortez, president and chief executive of the Las Vegas Convention 
and Visitors Authority. "Las Vegas is a viable and thriving 
convention and meeting destination, complete with groundbreaking 
technology for leisure and business travelers alike."

While Nextel did not say how much it is paying, the president and 
chief executive of the company marketing the sponsorships for the 
monorail company confirmed that Nextel has a 12-year term on the 
deal.

Patrick Pharris, who heads Promethean Partners, Las Vegas, also said 
train sponsorships run $1 million a year and station sponsorships, 
$2 million a year, but that the Convention Center station has an 
undisclosed price premium because of its location.

The Los Angeles Times reported the Convention Center sponsorship is 
$4 million a year and that Nextel would kick in an additional $16 
million to pay for a station pavilion, which includes a retail 
store, a business center and a 30-seat theater.

The monorail deal is the second major sponsorship Nextel announced 
this year. The wireless communications provider announced in June it 
would replace Winston as the title brand of NASCAR's championship 
series next year.

Nextel will pay $700 million over the next decade to be associated 
with America's top auto racing circuit. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. 
and its Winston cigarette brand has held that sponsorship since 
1971. The last Winston Cup race occurred in Homestead, Fla., last 
week and the first Nextel Cup race kicks off with the Daytona 500 in 
Florida in February.

The first company to sponsor one of the Las Vegas Monorail trains 
was Monster Beverage Co., a subsidiary of Corona, Calif.-based 
Hansen Natural Corp. Monster signed a 10-year deal to publicize its 
line of energy drinks and has designed a sleek black train wrap to 
deliver its message.

Motorola Inc., a Schaumburg, Ill.-based technology company observing 
its 75th anniversary this year, was announced as the second 
corporation to agree to a train sponsorship.

Pharris said negotiations are continuing with three other companies -
- Coca-Cola Co., Bacardi and General Motors Corp. -- for other 
station and train naming deals.

When the privately funded $650 million transportation system opens 
next year, passengers will pay an average of $2.50 to $3 per ride. 
The Las Vegas system is the first public monorail system to be built 
in the United States since 1971.

It is being built by Granite Construction Inc., Watsonville, Calif., 
and Bombardier Inc., Montreal. Those companies also have been 
contracted to build an extension of the monorail north to downtown 
Las Vegas.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/gaming/2003/nov/17/515873166.html

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