From Deseret News archives:

Will ballpark get new name?

Published: Monday, April 14, 2008 12:35 a.m. MDT
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RSL is seeking $1.5 million to $2 million annually over 10 years, figures comparable to what the Colorado Rapids soccer team is reported to get from a 20-year contract with Dick's Sporting Goods.

But Howard said RSL's expectations aren't reasonable.

"It's hard to think of the team getting that kind of value," he said. "They would be doing well to get about $500,000 a year."

Some 75 percent of major league sports franchises and 80 minor league baseball parks have corporate names on their stadiums, which Howard said diminishes the value "because of all the clutter.

"It used to be there was an anomaly effect," he said. "It really was a way to differentiate your brand."

Naming rights can be a prickly subject for corporations considering how to spend their marketing dollars. And the name itself can turn off sports fans who identify not only with the team but the place in which they play.

There are major 15 sports venues between Provo and Logan, most of which reside on college campuses. All but two — the RSL stadium under construction in Sandy and the E Center in West Valley City — bear the name of an individual or company.

More than the others, EnergySolutions and Franklin Covey clearly have an image or product to promote.

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"We believe that what we do is vital to the nuclear industry," EnergySolutions spokesman Mark Walker of said the company that cleans up and disposes of hazardous waste. "To better understand what we do, you've got to have some name identification."

Walker would not divulge the financial terms of the 10-year deal EnergySolutions reached with Utah Jazz and arena owner Larry Miller.

Franklin Covey believes its investment boosts name recognition.

"It reminds the public Franklin Covey has seven stores in the state and that we're a viable entity that's still providing service. It keeps us top of mind when people think of corporate or individual training," Lund said.

Or has it been around so long now that baseball fans just think of it as a place to see a game? Maybe that's one of things Franklin Covey is weighing as it considers its future in baseball.

Franklin Quest initially turned down the city's offer to buy the name, but reconsidered.

Former Salt Lake Mayor Deedee Corradini took heat for enlisting Franklin Quest to help pay for the stadium. Some called it crass commercialism, while others said the contribution wasn't enough to warrant its name on the marquee.

Howard said public outcry to corporate naming has subsided in recent years.

"People are so inured to it now. They're like, 'OK, that's what the landscape of sports is all about,"' he said.

Recent comments

Can anyone say Gordon B. Hinckley Memorial Field.

Ronald A. Young | April 14, 2008 at 9:50 p.m.

I have a VERY hard time with modern sports. And I'm not even that old...

Purist | April 14, 2008 at 9:37 p.m.

Beehive? Russ, you must have passed the 4th grade up or out test....

leroy | April 14, 2008 at 6:31 p.m.

Image
Danny Chan La, Deseret News

Franklin Covey Field is leased to Bees owner Larry H. Miller Sports & Entertainment Group, which is looking for a corporate partner.

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