Capital seeks chart sponsor

Mobile phone and confectionery brands are possible contenders to take over the £1.75m sponsorship of commercial radio’s Network Chart Show following Pepsi’s decision to end its nine-year relationship.

The Capital Radio sales team, headed by sales director Chris Bennett, holds the contract from the Commercial Radio Companies Association (CRCA) to sell advertising slots and recruit sponsors for the Network Chart Show brand.

Bennett says he is already in talks with several potential clients, including telecommunications and confectionery companies, following Pepsi’s decision not to renew its contract for 2003.

The Pepsi Chart Show is a three-hour show broadcast on Sundays and hosted by Capital FM DJ Dr (Neil) Fox. According to Rajar, listening figures for the show in the second quarter of 2002 reached 3,579,000. Rival show Radio 1’s Top 40 reaches 2,663,000 listeners.

Pepsi took over sponsorship of the Network Chart Show in 1993 (MW March 5, 1993) from Nescafé. Pepsi UK head of marketing Karen Goffe says: “Pepsi remains totally committed to a music strategy and in some countries this will be based around the charts. We are in the process of finalising details for our new music properties for 2003.”

The televised Pepsi Chart Show, broadcast by Channel 5, was ditched in June after a steady decline in audience figures from the programme’s launch high of 650,000 in 1998. Pepsi still produces a TV chart show in five international production centres for broadcast in 36 countries.