GERMANY: FORMER TENNIS CHAMPION BORIS BECKER TO ACT AS FRONTMAN FOR NEW INTERNET SPORTS PLATFORM VENTURE 'SPORTGATE'
Record ID:
647733
GERMANY: FORMER TENNIS CHAMPION BORIS BECKER TO ACT AS FRONTMAN FOR NEW INTERNET SPORTS PLATFORM VENTURE 'SPORTGATE'
- Title: GERMANY: FORMER TENNIS CHAMPION BORIS BECKER TO ACT AS FRONTMAN FOR NEW INTERNET SPORTS PLATFORM VENTURE 'SPORTGATE'
- Date: 8th August 2000
- Summary: (BERLIN, GERMANY) (AUGUST 08, 2000) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1. VARIOUS SHOTS OF BORIS BECKER WALKING TOWARDS BRANDENBURG GATE WITH FORMER HEAD OF RTL AND SPORTGATE MANAGER, HELMUT THOMA, AND POSING FOR PHOTOS WITH THOMA AND HEAD OF PIXELPARK,PAULUS NEEF 2. SOUNDBITE (German) FORMER HEAD OF RTL AND SPORTGATE MANAGER, HELMUT THOMA SAYING: "They (their competitors) mainly provide sporting information, whereas we want to appeal to the whole sporting community, fans and clubs, and to cover specific sports. So not just the Bundesliga and Formula One, although well also report about them, but our aim is also to offer the sports which dont get onto TV." 3. SHOTS OF PRESS CONFERENCE 4. SOUNDBITE (German) THOMA SAYING: "It'll be an internet portal which justifies the slogan if its about sport, it's about sports. Its easy and we want to be competent at it. The internet is in a phase where its going into the next stage, its the mid-stone age now, and it'll soon be going into the next age, the moving age, the internet will come out of it's static stage and its appropriate for it to move forward through sport." 5. SHOTS OF PRESS CONFERENCE 6. SOUNDBITE (German) THOMA SAYING: "Boris Becker isn't only the most popular and famous German sportsman, hes also the one associated with the internet, and who brought Germany into it. Now well see how into it he is. He has a great affinity to this new medium, and it was great that we got him." 7. SHOT OF BECKER THROUGH A GLASS DOOR 8. SOUNDBITE (German) BECKER SAYING: "After my relatively successful AOL campaign last summer, when the catchphrase was I'm in, the nation is asking where I'm in, well I'm in Sportgate. It would have been interesting to do a tennis or a BB website, but that would have been boring for me as I know me, and boring for the people clicking on the site as I don't play tennis anymore, and I don't want to talk about my private life all the time." 9. CUTAWAY OF STATUE 10. SOUNDBITE (German) BECKER SAYING: (referring to right wing violence) "It's unfortunate that its just all coming to light now. Thats the saddest for me, there's been far right extremism for some years now, and in this time they've become very organised. I've a black wife and black children, so I'm not just talking about it, for me the problem is a daily one. But it's also an international problem, happening in France and the US. But we have to stop just talking about it and saying it exists, and must act, have laws, chase those breaking the laws, and prosecute them." Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 23rd August 2000 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: BERLIN, GERMANY
- Country: Germany
- Reuters ID: LVA523B6WQ5FSI9FZO27C1QNVJC6
- Story Text: Three-times Wimbledon tennis champion Boris Becker is
to act as front man for a new Internet sports platform venture
being launched by Pixelpark AG, Germany's biggest Web
designer.
The new venture, Sportgate AG is due to be fully
launched on September 12 by Becker, Pixelpark's Venturepark
Incubator AG unit, and the German DSB sports association.
It will offer a wide range of local, regional and national
sports information, using "bottom-up" input from players, fans
and sports clubs. No financial details were available.
Helmut Thoma, founder of German private TV station RTL and
managing director of Sportgate, said talks were underway with
West German Radio (WDR), a number of satellite companies and
online service providers about cooperation deals.
"They (their competitors) mainly provide sporting
information, whereas we want to appeal to the whole sporting
community, fans and clubs, and to cover specific sports. So
not just the Bundesliga and Formula One, although well also
report about them, but our aim is also to offer the sports
which don't get onto TV," he said.
Thoma spoke of the purpose of Sportgate and it's future.
"It'll be an internet portal which justifies the slogan if
its about sport, it's about sports. Its easy and we want to be
competent at it. The internet is in a phase where its going
into the next stage, its the mid-stone age now, and itll soon
be going into the next age, the moving age, the internet will
come out of it's static stage and its appropriate for it to
move forward through sport," he expained.
Becker, who since his retirement from tennis last year has
set up his own sports marketing agency, said his role in the
venture would be primarily to put across the Sportgate message
to help the firm get in shape for a stock market listing.
"Boris Becker isn't only the most popular and famous
German sportsman, hes also the one associated with the
internet, and who brought Germany into it. Now we'll see how
into it he is. He has a great affinity to this new medium, and
it was great that we got him," Thoma, the Managing Director of
Sportgate said.
The investment in the Sportgate portal is said to be 20
million marks ($9.29 million) this year, rising to 50 million
marks by the time the venture hopes to list in 2002, which is
also when the company expects to become profitable.
"After my relatively successful AOL campaign last summer,
when the catchphrase was 'I'm in, the nation is asking where
I'm in', well I'm in Sportgate. It would have been interesting
to do a tennis or a BB website, but that would have been
boring for me as I know me, and boring for the people clicking
on the site as I don't play tennis anymore, and I don't want
to talk about my private life all the time," Becker said.
Boris Becker also discussed the recent right wing violence
whilist attending the launch, and how it effects him
personally and within his family.
"It's unfortunate that it's just all coming to light now.
That's the saddest for me, there's been far right extremism
for some years now, and in this time they've become very
organised. I've a black wife and black children, so I'm not
just talking about it, for me the problem is a daily one. But
it's also an international problem, happening in France and
the US. But we have to stop just talking about it and saying
it exists, and must act, have laws, chase those breaking the
laws, and prosecute them," he said.
Pixelpark's share price won a small boost from the news
and by 1234 GMT were 1.8 percent stronger at 79 euros. The
benchmark Neuer Markt index was about 0.5 percent weaker.
The group's shares have suffered a downtrend since early
April when they were hard-hit by news the company's planned
merger with Swedish firms Cell Network AB and Mandator AB had
collapsed.
Pixelpark's stock has lost about 30 percent since the start of
April.
($1=2.152 Mark).
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