Hankook Tire has begun its 2009 consumer broadcast advertising campaign scoring brand impressions during the 2009 World Baseball Classic (WBC), expecting to reach more than 11.4 million viewers in the United States alone.
Hankook’s virtual home plate signage will appear in half inning rotations during 33 televised games during the international competition as broadcast on ESPN, ESPN2, MLB Network, ESPN Deportes and internationally on ESPN Star Network. In addition to this virtual signage, Hankook TV commercials will be broadcast during the 16 tournament games on the new MLB Network as well as on all 39 ESPN Star broadcasts in Asia. Hankook will also have unique 3D signage at L.A. Dodger stadium during the WBC Finals games airing on ESPN and ESPN Deportes March 21-23.
“With the upcoming start of the 2009 Major League Baseball season, we saw a natural fit with the WBC broadcasts as the interest in this unique international competition continues to grow,” says Bill Bainbridge, director of brand communications for Hankook Tire America Corp. “Through our virtual signage and commercials during the WBC games, we are able to utilize a unique global platform to effectively present the Hankook brand to millions of baseball enthusiasts.”
The WBC is an international baseball tournament sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation and created by Major League Baseball, the Major League Baseball Players Association, and other professional baseball leagues and their players associations around the world. The WBC provides a stage for the best baseball players in the world to compete against one another while representing their home countries.
ESPN and the MLB Network will be sharing broadcasting rights in the United States with ESPN broadcasting 23 of the games and the MLB Network airing the remaining 16 games. ESPN International will be broadcasting all 39 games to 167 countries around the world.
Hankook has a long tradition of involvement in sports sponsorships. In addition to sponsoring the WBC this year, Hankook sports marketing investments in 2009 look to include home plate signage in MLB stadiums around the country integrated with broadcast and print advertising geared to sports enthusiasts as well as Formula Drift and Time Attack motorsports.
Hankook is the seventh largest and one of the fastest growing tire manufacturers in the world. It invests approximately five percent of revenue in research and development in order to meet customer demands and enhancing customer satisfaction.
Headquartered in Wayne, N.J., Hankook Tire America Corp. is a technology-focused, market-driven company that markets and distributes a complete line of high performance and ultra-high performance passenger tires, light truck, SUV tires, as well as medium truck and bus tires to more than 400 independent dealers through 3000+ retail sales locations in the United States and Canada.
