Sharp AQUOS Teams Up With MLB as Sponsor

The Sharp AQUOS will become baseball’s official high-def TV

March 2007 By Stephen Silver

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Coming amidst months of controversy over its exclusive broadcast deal with DirecTV, Major League Baseball has made another deal related to its televised presentation. But this one is certainly less likely to cause any kind of fan outcry.

On Thursday, baseball announced an agreement with the Sharp Electronics Corp. to make the Sharp AQUOS the official high-definition television of Major League Baseball. Sharp already had sponsorships with eight of baseball’s 30 teams.

The deal, which is for three years and in the “tens of millions” of dollars, entails Sharp setting up both MLB-related store displays and advertising in stadiums and during televised games. Sharp will also become the naming sponsor of each year’s All-Star Fan Fest, the annual Hank Aaron Award (for the best offensive player in each league), and the Player of the Month awards.

Sports leagues, as well as individual teams, have traditionally made sponsorship deals, giving “official” designations to everything from cars to televisions to beers to soft drinks to mortgage lenders. The companies get exposure, while the leagues get another revenue stream, which is usually split evenly among its teams.