TAMPA BAY – Tampa Bay Arena, LP and Times Publishing Company announced this morning that the St. Pete Times Forum is being renamed the "Tampa Bay Times Forum," effective January 1, 2012. Additionally, the companies announced that the naming rights contract between the two has been extended through August 31, 2018. The arena is the playing home of the National Hockey League's Tampa Bay Lightning and it will host the Republican National Convention in August, 2012. The sponsorship was extended on terms consistent with the current contract.