In Business Las Vegas, December 14th, 2007
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority will negotiate a contract extension with the Las Vegas Convention Center's telecommunication services provider, unveil a series of advertisements and stage Big League Weekend for the 25th time in late March.
In a unanimous vote Dec. 11, the authority's board of directors agreed to offer a five-year extension to Smart City Networks LP, which has held the telecommunications services contract at the Convention Center since 1998.
The LVCVA gave Smart City a five-year extension in 2000 that included a $1.3 million capital investment in infrastructure by the company and two additional one-year deals that extend the relationship to June 14.
Under current terms, the LVCVA receives 36 percent of revenue commissions — which amount to annual revenue to the authority of about Smart City makes at shows staged at the Convention Center.$2 million — for sales
The LVCVA staff in November requested proposals from other companies to determine if there were providers that could offer a better deal.
A committee that included representatives of the LVCVA's facilities, customer experience and information technology staffs evaluated proposals from six competitors, including the
Las Vegas
operations of Cox Communications, Embarq, Leverage Communications and Verizon. The evaluation determined that the four
Las Vegas
competitors and CCLD.net of
Atlanta
scored lower than Smart City and Shownets of
Scottsdale, Ariz.
Based on the evaluation, the board agreed to extend the Smart City contract.
But that didn't sit well with two of the rejected competitors, Shownets and Cox.
Paul
Gillespie, Shownets vice president of sales and marketing
, and
Steve
Schorr, Cox vice president of corporate and government affairs
, said a five-year extension of the contract was unreasonable because technological advancements have occurred so rapidly.
Gillespie
also said competitors would be able to provide a better deal for the authority than Smart City's 36 percent payment from revenue commissions.
Gillespie
and
Schorr
urged the board to request proposals rather than grant another extension to Smart City.
LVCVA staff said Smart City's high customer satisfaction rating and the continuity of telecommunications service during a major construction project at the Convention Center weighed heavily in its recommendation to extend the contract rather than seek a competitive bid.
In other business, board members got their first look at a new series of television ads with the theme, "Your
Vegas
Is Showing."
The campaign, which will debut in key markets in January, will be a supplement to the successful "What Happens Here, Stays Here" campaign. LVCVA officials say the new campaign will be different because it will spotlight some of the unique product offerings of the local market.
Locations and backgrounds used for the new ads include the LAX nightclub at Luxor; "Ka,"
Joel
Robuchon
and Studio 54 at MGM Grand; "Zumanity" at New York-New York; Napoleon's at Paris Las Vegas; StripHouse at Planet Hollywood;
Roberto
Cavilli
at the Forum Shops at Caesars; "Phantom — The Las Vegas Spectacular," the Grand Canal Shoppes and Blue Man Group at the Venetian; a hotel suite at The Hotel at Mandalay Bay; and Brioni at Wynn Las Vegas.
The ads cost $2.5 million to produce and the initial national media buy, which will include television, print and Internet spots, will cost $10 million to $12 million.
The board also got a jump on next year's baseball season with three items that won approval.
The board agreed to spend 25th Big League Weekend March 28-29 at Cashman Field. The net cost is only LVCVA officials also say the games normally generate about Cactus League schedule.$400,000 to stage the $200,000 because of broadcast revenue that will be generated. $2 million in nongaming revenue for the city at the conclusion of spring training's
The Chicago Cubs and the Seattle Mariners are the two teams that will participate in the games.
The board also voted to award a Young Electric Sign Co. to renovate the scoreboard at Cashman Field. The main scoreboard structure won't change, but all the electronics inside it will be refurbished.$574,553 contract to
The board also approved the assignment of a stadium lease with Stars Las Vegas LLC in advance of the pending ownership change for the Las Vegas 51s minor-league baseball team.
Don
Logan, general manager
of the team, said the deal with the Stevens Baseball Group is expected to close in January pending approval of the Pacific Coast League commissioner's office.
