Method of marketing and promoting sporting activities and an article for carrying out said method

Abstract

A method of marketing and/or promoting an organized sport and/or a method of association of an individual and/or an organization with organized sports, such as a corporation. utilizing a three-dimensional novelty item, puzzle, and/or gaming object which simulates the appearance, and preferably the color and shape of the gaming object for that particular organized sport.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are as follows:  
     
         1 . A method of marketing and/or promoting an organized sport and/or a method of association of an individual and/or an organization with organized sports, such as a corporation. utilizing a three-dimensional novelty item, puzzle, and/or gaming object which simulates the appearance, and preferably the color and shape of the gaming object for that particular organized sport.  
     
     
         2 . A three-dimensional novelty item, puzzle, and/or gaming object which simulates the appearance, and preferably the color and shape of the gaming object for that particular organized sport, said three-dimensional novelty item, puzzle, and/or gaming object being made from paper or the functional equivalent thereof.  
     
     
         3 . A simulated sporting article such as a preferred hockey puck, baseball, basketball, football or the like in the form of a novelty and/or puzzle like article for the promotion of the particular organized sport in question, the three dimensional novelty and/or puzzle like article simulating the appearance of a sporting object such as a baseball, football, basketball and preferably a hockey puck or the like and simulates said object in three dimensions in appearance and preferably color and shape, one of the surfaces of the simulated sporting object, for example the preferred hockey puck, including a separation or split, or said object may be manipulated or transformed in order to preferably transform, manipulate separate or split the gaming object, and preferred hockey puck, from a first position to a second position wherein an image is exposed.  
     
     
         4 . The three dimensional novelty and/or puzzle of  claim 3  which takes various forms selected from the group including disks, spheres, cubes, triangles, ellipsoids or the like.  
     
     
         5 . A method of marketing and/or promotion of an organized sport such as hockey, baseball, football, basketball or the like utilizing a simulation of the sporting object used, for example baseball, basketball, football, or hockey, in the form of a novelty and preferably a puzzle which may be transformed or manipulated from a first position wherein the puzzle appears as, or is associated with the gaming object to a second position wherein the gaming object is transformed, manipulated and/or split to expose an image.  
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5  wherein said image is selected from the group of a player image, a game schedule, team logos, and suitable advertising information as desired by a corporate sponsor.  
     
     
         7 . The sporting object, puzzle, or novelty of  claim 3  further comprising a multiplicity of interconnected segments which allows said sporting object, puzzle, or novelty, preferably a hockey puck, to be transformed, manipulated separated or split from a first position to a second position wherein the image is exposed.  
     
     
         8 . A method of promotion and/or advertising comprising the steps of: 
 i) providing an interactive promotional item being a substantially disk shaped body simulating a hockey puck in appearance and shape,    ii) preferably providing a separation or split in said body so as to enable manipulation or transformation thereof,    iii) providing an image of a hockey nature observable preferably when the body is separated or split,    iv) preferably providing images as follows: 
 i) hockey players which may include statistical information,  
 ii) hockey schedules, team logos, or the like,  
 iii) advertising or the like,  
   v) if necessary or desired returning the body to its unsplit or unseparated condition,    vi) preferably splitting or separating the body in a second manner to observe a different image,    wherein said promotional item may be distributed for promotion purposes to the public having an interest in hockey.    
     
     
         9 . A method of promotion and/or advertising comprising the steps of: 
 i) providing an interactive promotional item being a predetermined shaped body simulating a gaming object in appearance and shape, said gaming object being selected from the group of objects of for example, a basket ball, football, baseball soccer ball or the like,    ii) preferably providing a separation or split in said item so as to enable manipulation thereof,    iii) providing an image observable preferably when the item is separated or split,    iv) preferably providing images as follows: 
 i) players which may include statistical information,  
 ii) schedules, team logos or the like,  
 iii) advertising or the like,  
   v) if required desired returning the item to its unsplit or unseparated condition,    vi) preferably splitting or separating the body in a second manner to observe a different image,    wherein said promotional item may be distributed for promotion purposes to the public having an interest in a particular organized sport.    
     
     
         10 . A transformable disc shaped promotional item simulating or resembling a hockey puck, said transformable item comprising a top, bottom, and an edge having a predetermined width separating said top and bottom, said top and bottom being substantially circular in shape and having substantially the same diameters, said top having at least one of and preferably a predetermined number of first separations therein interrupting the continuity of surface thereof and extending to the bottom and terminating thereat, not interrupting the continuity of the surface of said bottom, preferably said bottom also having at least one and preferably a predetermined number of second separations therein interrupting the continuity of the surface thereof and extending to the top and terminating thereat not interrupting the continuity of the surface of said top, said promotional item having first panel members extending from said top proximate each of said first separations towards said bottom and being affixed to said bottom but not to adjacent first panel members, preferably said promotional item having second panel members extending from said bottom proximate each of said preferred second separations towards said top and being affixed to said top but not to adjacent second panel members, said first and preferred second panel members having disposed thereon an image, (for example i) an image of a hockey player preferably including their history and statistics, ii) an image of a hockey league schedule, iii) an advertisement, and/or, iv) hockey memorabilia or the like, said promotional item being transformable from a non-transformed position, wherein said item substantially resembles a hockey puck, to at least a first transformed position wherein at least one of said first panels is exposed when the promotional item is manipulated from the non-transformed position to the at least one first transformed position, preferably said promotional item also being transformable from the non-transformed position to at least a second transformed position wherein at least one of said second panels is exposed when the promotional item is manipulated from the non-transformed position to the preferred at least one second transformed position, wherein said transformable item may be distributed to the public as a promotional item.  
     
     
         11 . An interactive promotional item comprising a predetermined shaped body simulating a gaming object in appearance and shape, said gaming object being selected from the group of objects of a basket ball, football, baseball, soccer ball or the like, 
 said gaming object having a split or separation therein so as to enable manipulation or transformation thereof,    preferably said object having an image observable when the item is manipulated, said image being selected from the group of images of: 
 i) players which may include statistical information,  
 ii) schedules, team logos or the like,  
 iii) advertising or the like,  
   wherein said promotional item may be distributed to the public having an interest in a particular organized sport.    
     
     
         12 . An interactive promotional item comprising a substantially disk shaped body simulating a hockey puck in appearance and shape, 
 preferably said item having a split or separation in said body so as to enable manipulation or transformation thereof,    wherein an image of a hockey nature is observable when the body is split, said image being selected from the group of images as follows: 
 i) hockey players which may include statistical information,  
 ii) hockey schedules, team logos or the like,  
 iii) advertising or the like,  
   wherein said promotional item may be distributed to the public having an interest in hockey.    
     
     
         13 . The sporting object of  claim 2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  7 ,  10 ,  11 , or  12  wherein the novelty or puzzle or simulated sporting object is manufactured from paper of suitable strength or any functional alternative, for example plastic.  
     
     
         14 . The method of promotion of  claim 1 ,  5 ,  6 ,  8 , or  9  wherein the novelty or puzzle or simulated sporting object is manufactured from paper of suitable strength or any functional alternative, for example plastic.