Nortel Bankruptcy Filing Could Jeopardize Olympic Sponsorships

Nortel's sponsorships of the '10 Vancouver Games and the '12 London Games "could be in jeopardy" in the wake of the company filing for bankruptcy protection, according to Petti Fong of the TORONTO STAR. The London Games "could be hit hardest" by losing Nortel, which is a Tier One sponsor of the event. The company's sponsorship of the London Games is "worth about $71[M] in cash and network infrastructure." For the Vancouver Games, Nortel is "not providing any cash," but is providing "in-kind services such as phone and networking equipment." VANOC Chief Information Officer Ward Chapin in a statement said of Nortel, "As a partner, they have kept us informed every step of the way. Most of Nortel's commitments to the Games have been delivered and will be in place by May" (TORONTO STAR, 1/15). Chapin added Nortel yesterday "reaffirmed its commitment to its Vancouver 2010 sponsorship." REUTERS' Allan Dowd noted VANOC's agreements with official suppliers "range in value between" C$3-15M (REUTERS, 1/14).

LONDON IMPACT: In Manchester, Owen Gibson reports for the '12 London Games it is "understood that Nortel, which like the other tier one sponsors pays sponsorship contributions on a staggered annual basis, has met all its commitments to date." But Nortel's future involvement in the Games "could be in doubt after analysts predicted the company ... would be unlikely to survive in its current form" (Manchester GUARDIAN, 1/15). In London, Owen Slot reports Nortel "will remain a significant concern, particularly because LOCOG raised far more from the company than had been expected." Nortel had signed on as LOCOG's official network infrastructure partner, "a category that was originally seen as a tier-two partner." But Nortel "offered to come in at the [US$58.5M] level if it could be given tier-one status." A LOCOG official: "We are aware of the situation and will work through it with Nortel" (LONDON TIMES, 1/15).