Sony Ericsson signed a deal with the WTA Tour to allow tennis fans to send text messages to players via on-court screens. The $88 million six-year sponsorship is a first, using wireless technology to allow the audience to communicate with players.

"We're looking at being able to send SMS messages to screens on court," said Miles Flint, Sony Ericsson president. "It's also feasible to put tennis games and the promotion of the players into phones."

Thus far the partnership has been welcomed by top players. "Women's tennis has grown so much from the late 1990s. People know Serena (Williams), Venus (Williams) and Maria (Sharapova) and everyone by their first names," said Lindsay Davenport, number one ranked player in the world. "I was happy and relieved... because it was kind of mind-boggling to me that we couldn't get the really big, strong companies that would help us develop the sport even more."

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