Taking the stage.

The article focuses on the marketing of entertainment events. The tight economy and slack demand for sponsorships is giving problems to summer concert promoters, as marketers hesitate before inking deals. Marketers are being so careful with due diligence and strategy that opportunities sometimes slip away before they finish their research. But when marketers finally sign contracts, they are committed. Sponsorships of concerts in 2002 feature an unprecedented level of marketing tie-ins, making brands almost synonymous with the music or the artist's image.