AMBUSH MARKETING- BRIAN HEIDELBERGER, WINSTON & STRAWN LLP
Definition of Ambush Marketing: Trading off the goodwill of an event/property without
having permission from the event/property.
1. Legal Ambush Marketing Techniques
– Sponsorship of a team (rather than a league)
– Sponsorship of a local committee (rather than the national organization)
– Congratulatory ads (congratulate Tiger Woods, winner of Buick
Championship, when the sponsor has no legal relationships with the
tournament or Tiger Woods)
– Distribution of samples outside the event/property
– Inclusion of a disclaimer (include “not an official sponsor of property X” in
the fine print if an ad)
2. Negotiation Tactics to avoid Ambush Marketing
– Clearly define the sponsor platform or category (what does it include and what
is does not include)
– Define category exclusivity narrowly and specify the category (e.g., Auto
category may include trucks, domestic, foreign, rental, finance, SUV, etc)
– Sell discrete categories
– Identify all categories that you are selling, discuss any additional categories
with sponsor
– Include specific competitors (e.g., Discover Card may ask that no advertising
be sold to American Express in your event program)
– Include categories that may be passed through or re-sold by sponsors (e.g., an
American Express Financial Services may want to pass through the rights to
personal credit card category to their American Express Card group)
– Request “clean venue” (e.g., if Budweiser is the sponsor of the stadium and
you have Miller as sponsor of your sporting event hosted in the stadium,
Miller may request covering up the Budweiser signage)
3. Using Event Tickets as a Prize for Sweepstakes/Promotions
Often times non-sponsors will advertise a promotion or event using event tickets
as a prize. For example, Best Buy is not a sponsor of the Super Bowl but, may
run an in-store promotion to enter to win a trip to Miami and tickets to the Super
Bowl. However, the ticket includes language that prohibits promotional use of
the tickets and therefore it is illegal for Best Buy, or any other non-sponsor
company) to use them in a promotion. Typically, the ticket serves as a contract
with the ticket purchaser.
4. How to Protect Yourself as an Event Owner from Ambush Marketing:
– Restrict the rights of sponsors that have personal relationships with athletes
– Secure advertising and merchandise rights within the radius of your venue
– Ensure broadcast rights don’t allow ads from the competitors of your sponsors
– Have legal counsel ready and available to take action is necessary
– Establish a dress code for entering your event/exhibit/property
As a property to test for ambush, ask yourself, “Are your event/property attendees
going to assume that the company is a sponsor (or be confused as to whether or
not it is a sponsor)?