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At last year's first night race and
Singapore's inaugural Grand Prix, tickets for hospitality suites
and grandstand seats were distributed freely by numerous corporate
sponsors. This year, that generosity seems to have virtually
disappeared in
light of the financial turmoil. |
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BT added that motor-related companies
and banks which had F1 programmes in 2008 have scaled back or
completely cut down
on such activities.
Daimler, for example, invited 70 guests to the Paddock Club in
2008 but this year, the number is closer to 30. Only
business associates are on the list, unlike last year when some
VIP customers were included.
The Paddock Club is situated in the Pit Building and is the most
expensive hospitality suite available. Entry costs
$8,000 per person this year.
The BT report also said that Shell, the fuels partner of the
Ferrari team, has significantly reduced the number of
invited guests, and these guests are restricted to a few Shell
customers and business partners.
As for financial institutions, OCBC had booked a Paddock Club
suite for about 100 people last year but is not taking part
in F1 this year. The Royal Bank of Scotland, a major sponsor of
the Williams F1 team, announced that it will not be
renewing the F1 sponsorship deal when it expires at the end of the
2010 season. The bank suffered billions of dollars of
losses amid the financial downturn.
Race promoter Singapore GP (SGP) said that 'close to 20 financial
institutions have decided to entertain their valued
clients at our event this year - approximately the same number as
last year'.
Overall, SGP called the figures achieved for both general
ticketing and corporate hospitality 'extremely good compared
with other circuits, for this season'.
The spokesman said: 'Within the context of the current economic
situation, SGP's achievement is nothing short of
sterling.' |