NPD And GfK Form Sports Tracking Europe 8/6/00 Sports Tracking Europe (STE) is a new venture tracking athletic footwear sales in eight European countries. The new service will combine information from both consumer panels and retailers for a total market overview. NPD holds the majority interest in the venture, while GfK AG has a minority interest. Sports Tracking Europe will provide marketers with consumer panel information from NPD's pre-recruited panels. NPD has been tracking consumer purchasing of athletic footwear for more than four years in France, Germany, the UK, Italy and Spain. Point-of-sale tracking data will be collected via a network of participating retailers throughout Europe, formerly operated by ACNielsen. Nielsen will remain data supplier to the new service, ensuring continuity for the sales reporting system, which has been established and running in Europe for five years. Measures provided will include sales in value and units, market share and pricing for the total market, for each footwear category, and for individual manufacturers and brands. Subscribers will be able to use the service to identify business opportunities and fine tune marketing strategies. NPD plans to expand the new tracking service across eight countries: France, Spain, Italy, The Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Germany and the UK. Client service will be handled by NPD's client service staff in its five European offices in Paris, London, Nurnberg, Milan and Madrid. According to Andy Tarshis, president of The NPD Group Worldwide, "With this agreement, NPD reaches its goal to provide the full pan-European service that our clients need. This, together with the fact that sports has been a specialised area for NPD for over 10 years in the U.S., means that NPD now offers an international service essential for the sports industry today." Gerard Hermet, member of the Board of GfK AG, commented: "This new company will reinforce our relationship with NPD, our main partner worldwide for the globalisation of our Non-Food Tracking Service."