Bell 2010 deal “watershed moment” for Canadian media
T elecoms company Bell Canada has signed an agreement to offer its customers “the ultimate front-row seat” to next year’s Winter Games in Vancouver. Bell, Canada’s largest telecommunications provider, will broadcast 4,500 hours of coverage in both English and French, carrying 10 networks in HD, and offering its customers exclusive access to nine mobile broadcast feeds. Bell was already the official telecoms partner of Vancouver 2010 and its chief brand officer Wade Oosterman said: “With Bell, Canadians can truly be ready for the 2010 Winter Games and follow them anytime and anywhere. “This partnership provides Bell customers with unprecedented access to the Olympic experience, something no other telecommunications company in Canada can offer. This is...
Organisers dismiss Vancouver ticket sales criticism
V ancouver 2010 officials have defended the way tickets to next year’s Winter Olympics are sold in the United States in the face of criticism from the US media. Reports in Seattle, Washington, which is only a few hours’ drive from Vancouver, claimed that tickets were too difficult for the public to buy. US sales are handled by Jetset Sports, a firm authorised by the US Olympic Committee and a long-time Olympic sponsor. National Olympic committees are allowed to sell tickets at higher prices to raise money and the Vancouver Organising Committee (VANOC) pointed out that it has no control over foreign sales programmes. VANOC executive vice-president Dave Cobb said: “Jetset’s activities in the United States are based entirely on a contract they have entered...
Goepel announced as Vancouver 2010 chairman
R usty Goepel, a long-standing member of the Vancouver Organising Committee’s board of directors, has been appointed chairman of the 2010 Winter Olympics. Goepel replaces Jack Poole who died of cancer last month just hours after the Olympic flame for next year’s Games was lit in Greece. Goepel is a Canadian businessman who served on the board as a representative of the British Columbia provincial government. The opening ceremony for the Winter Olympics will take place on February 12.
Procter & Gamble Will Sponsor U.S. Teams at Olympic Games in 2010, 2012
P rocter & Gamble Co., the world’s largest household-products maker, will be an official sponsor for the U.S. Olympic teams at the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver and the 2012 Summer Games in London. P&G and the U.S. Olympic Committee announced the partnership in a news release, without disclosing financial terms. Since last year’s Beijing Olympics, the USOC had lost partners including Bank of America Corp., Home Depot Inc., General Motors Co. and Eastman Kodak Co. P&G, whose brands include Olay, Bounty, Crest, Scope, Pringles and Pepto-Bismol, becomes a sponsor for personal, oral care, beauty and household cleaning products, pre-packaged potato snacks and cold, flu and stomach remedies. “Our partners provide us with the resources, both...
IOC gives assurances on 2010 Games budget
T he International Olympic Committee has assured organizers of next year’s Winter Olympics in Vancouver it will help with a potential budget gap caused by the global recession, officials said on Wednesday. Canadian organizers have warned they face a significant budget shortfall because of the worldwide economic downturn. Among the most pressing issues is a potential C$30 million ($27 million) revenue shortfall because the IOC has only been able to sign up nine of the 11 worldwide corporate sponsors expected when Vancouver’s C$1.7 billion operating budget was prepared. Specifics of the IOC’s offer were not released, but Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC) officials said it gave them the assurance they needed with the opening of the Games in the...
Ad sales on target, Olympic broadcast consortium says
C anada’s Olympic broadcasters say they’re ahead of revenue projections for Games-time ad sales. The CTV-Rogers Media Inc. consortium says they have signed agreements with 22 companies, including official Olympic sponsors. There had been questions about whether the consortium could sell enough high-priced Olympic advertising to recoup their $153-million (U.S.) bid for the right to be the official Canadian broadcaster. But consortium president Keith Pelley said in a statement they are now ahead of their revenue plan. He said the wide variety of networks within the consortium have helped them sell advertising packages for as low as $100,000, but they’ve also signed some multimillion-dollar deals. The consortium includes French, English and...
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