QuesTec, Inc. and Oral Health America's National
Spit Tobacco Education Program (NSTEP) (www.nstep.org)
have agreed to a sponsorship contract for the
remainder of the 2001 Major League Baseball regular
season. NSTEP was established in 1994 with the
support of Major League Baseball and is funded in
part by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Chaired
by former Major Leaguer and broadcaster Joe
Garagiola, NSTEP's purpose is to educate the
American public to the dangers of “smokeless”,
or "spit" tobacco products through a
variety of public awareness activities, many of
which involve baseball.
Since 1995, NSTEP has received over $100 million in
leveraged exposure for its various activities and
public service announcements that have featured
baseball celebrities such as Derek Jeter, Henry
Aaron, Jeff Bagwell, Alex Rodriguez, and most
recently, entertainer Garth Brooks. The
campaign has received numerous accolades from such
public figures as former President Bill Clinton and
former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services
Donna Shalala, as well as received several awards
for excellence in communication.
During FOX Sports Net’s (FSN’s) regional
coverage of Major League Baseball games across the
country, a “SMOKELESS DOES NOT MEAN HARMLESS”
graphic, including the web site: www.nstep.org,
will be prominently displayed several times per game
on PitchTrax virtual replays, along with two verbal
“SMOKELESS” messages to be read by the
announcers. As part of this Agreement, Oral
Health America has contracted QuesTec to promote
their message during 380 televised baseball games on
FOX Sports Net. Oral Health America’s
PitchTrax sponsorship will be featured in 10
regional markets on FOX Sports Net and has already
appeared during FSN’s coverage of the Arizona
Diamondbacks, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds,
Cleveland Indians, Milwaukee Brewers, Oakland A’s,
San Francisco Giants and Texas Rangers.
NSTEP's Chairman Joe Garagiola praised the PitchTrax
technology. The former big league catcher said,
"I've always felt the catcher had the best view
of any player on the field. PitchTrax now
makes everybody a catcher without having to catch
the ball. Fans can also learn the truth about
spit tobacco while they watch. I believe
PitchTrax is the perfect way to let our fans,
especially the youngsters, know how the pitchers are
thinking and even a more important message that
smokeless does not mean harmless."
“PitchTrax offers advertisers and sponsors a
unique platform on which to promote their brand and
message during televised games of Major League
Baseball. PitchTrax provides sponsors with a
high profile presence during live action at critical
points throughout the game, allowing them to
separate themselves from all of the in-between
innings clutter”, stated Steven B. Greenfield,
QuesTec Chairman and CEO.
PitchTrax uses QuesTec’s proprietary tracking
technology to create a unique three-dimensional view
of the exact trajectory, movement, speed and
ultimate plate-location of every pitch thrown during
a game. PitchTrax offers viewers a three-dimensional
perspective that can be shown from any angle or zoom
level and illustrates the true movement and location
of the baseball better than any TV camera angle can.
PitchTrax is currently licensed exclusively to the
FOX Channels Group as "in-game
enhancement" during live television broadcasts
of Major League Baseball games. PitchTrax
appears as a sponsored feature during FOX Sports Net
productions.
