LG NOT INTERESTED IN MEDIA WHORES

LG Electronics said Thursday that it is no longer interested in cutting a deal to make a shirt sponsorship for Manchester United, a football team in the English Premier League.

``It seems that they (United) are playing with media in order to raise the price in the bidding,'' an LG official said on the condition of anonymity.

LG, the fourth largest mobile phone maker and the top air conditioner seller in the world, was in the final stage of negotiations for a 40 million pound (68 billion won) shirt sponsorship deal with Manchester United, several British news services reported this week. The club also put the news on its Web site on Tuesday.

The alleged deal between LG and United was supposed to cover four years beginning next year, by which United would receive get 10 million pounds, or 17 billion won per year for putting the LG logo on their jersey.

If signed, the LG-United sponsorship would have renewed the rivalry of Chelsea and Manchester in the Premier League on the behalf of the two Korean firms. Samsung and Chelsea share the same corporate color of blue, while LG and Manchester both use red.

Currently United is sponsored by British mobile phone group Vodafone, which has paid 9 million pounds per year. United initially turned down LG's offer which amounted more than 10 million pounds, a Samsung official at its sports marketing department said earlier this week.