The game of musical chairs continues for corporate brand sponsors at L.A. Live in Downtown Los Angeles.
Late 2021 brought the news that Staples Center would become (sigh) Crypto.com Arena as part of a $700-million naming rights deal. Now, L.A. Live and Convention Center overlord AEG has announced a multi-year agreement with NBCUniversal's Peacock streaming service to rename the 7,100-seat Microsoft Theater as the Peacock Theater. Likewise, the adjoining plaza now known as Xbox Plaza will be rechristened "Peacock Place."
“Like Peacock, L.A. Live is at the epicenter of premium original entertainment, exhilarating sports, one-of-a-kind experiences and extreme fandom,” said NBCUniversal's Kelly Campbell in a news release. “Through Peacock Theater and Peacock Place, we’ll have the opportunity to bring all the elements of our brand to life with the millions of fans who visit L.A. Live each year, while partnering with the incredible team at AEG to further cement Peacock as the ultimate destination for audiences.”
The less sanitized reactions from Twitter were - let's say "mixed."
As would be expected, the rebrand will also come with new signage and visual elements across the L.A. Live campus, including a dedicated LED marquee at the intersection of Figueroa Street and Olympic Boulevard with two video boards - one standing 29 feet high and 88 feet side, and the other 29 feet high and 56 feet wide - highlighting the streaming service's content offerings. The display will also highlight series premiers, promotions, and events taking place at L.A. Live.
New signage and branding is a relatively small change for what is set to sweep through L.A. Live, as well as the adjoining arena and Convention Center in the coming years.
AEG is planning an expansion of the J.W. Marriott hotel complex, which would take the form of a 37-story, 861-room hotel tower at Chick Hearn Court and Georgia Street. Combined with the existing J.W. Marriott, the combined hotel would be the second largest in California based on total room count.
Across Chick Hearn Court, AEG is also rolling out a "nine-figure" overhaul of Crypto.com Arena, which will add new amenities and open the interior of arena to view the Downtown skyline.
Finally, the Convention Center is poised to undergo its own expansion, adding up to 700,000 square feet of space which will increase its total size to 2.2 million square feet - more than 1 million of which is exhibition space.
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