Samsung opens its wallet for Games
A strong rebound this year from a devastating global recession will ensure Samsung Electronics spends more money on the Vancouver 2010 Olympics than any other Winter Games in its sponsorship history.
“2009 has been a very strong year — an amazing performance that even we didn’t expect,” Samsung vice-president Gyehyun Kwon said in an interview. “That means there will be no cutbacks in our activities and marketing.”
Samsung posted a $3.8-billion third-quarter profit this year on revenues of $32.6 billion.
The Korean-based consumer electronics giant is a huge sports sponsor, owning several Korean sports teams and sponsoring English football club Chelsea in a five-year deal worth an estimated $90 million.
Kwon, who heads Samsung’s worldwide sports marketing, can’t divulge exactly how much money it will spend on the 2010 Games but stressed it will be significant.
“Our investment in the Vancouver Olympic Games is our largest ever Winter Games investment — more than Salt Lake City and Torino, absolutely,” Kwon said.
Samsung’s global Olympic sponsorship began with the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano, Japan, and will continue at least through to the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro.
As the official supplier of wireless communications equipment, it will provide about 9,200 mobile phones to the Vancouver Olympic family, including Games officials and athletes.
It is negotiating to wrap a downtown Vancouver building with Samsung Olympic signage, has big plans to showcase its brand on outdoor advertising throughout the region and will build a pavilion at David Lam Park it expects will attract more than 600,000 visitors as part of Vancouver’s LiveCity Yaletown celebration site.
The two-storey, 7,500-square-foot pavilion — to be called Olympic Rendezvous at Samsung [OR@S] — will showcase Samsung technology, provide live entertainment and offer lounge space for athletes and their families.
For the first time ever, owners of select Samsung mobile phones, with Windows operating systems, can download an application to use the company’s Wireless Olympic Works [WOW] that will provide real-time 2010 Games information and updates.
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