Johnson & Johnson has joined 11 other leading companies as a worldwide marketing partner of the International Olympic Committee, giving it the exclusive marketing rights to both Winter and Summer Games.
J&J joins The Olympic Partners Program (TOP) of the IOC as the Official Health Care Products Sponsor, the company said last week. The deal strengthens J&J’s foothold in the environs of elite athletes, including its sponsorship of the 2006 Winter Games, underway in Torino, Italy.
The new deal includes J&J’s consumer products, pharmaceuticals and medical devices and diagnostics businesses. The agreement marks the first time a broad health care products company has become a worldwide partner of the IOC, J&J said.
Under the agreement, J&J gets sponsorship rights in connection with more than 200 National Olympic Committees and national Olympic teams. J&J said it plans to provide health education, services and care in global markets across its portfolio of products and brands.
According to the IOC Web site, TOP partners also receive:
- Use of all Olympic imagery and appropriate Olympic designations on products
- Hospitality opportunities at the Olympic Games
- Direct advertising and promotional opportunities, including preferential access to Olympic broadcast advertising
- On-site concessions/franchise and product sale/showcase opportunities
- Ambush marketing protection
- Acknowledgement of their support through a broad Olympic sponsorship recognition program
In July 2005, J&J became an Official Partner of the Beijing 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Official Health Care Products Sponsor of the Torino 2006 Olympic Winter Games, and the Official Health Care Products Partner of the United States Olympic Committee. The 2006 Winter Games marks the first time J&J has made a company-wide sponsorship commitment to the Olympic Games.
In Torino, J&J has a number of marketing initiatives underway. Product samples are available at 40 brand-sponsored tourism kiosks located in and around the sporting venues and spectator areas. In addition, liquid bandage brand Compeed and skin care brand Neutrogena have street teams roaming Piazza Solferino handing out product samples and coupons to visitors. The ACUVUE brand has hostesses offering discounts on contact lenses throughout the city of Torino. Compeed and Neutrogena are providing interactive areas for fans visiting the Piazza Solferino.
Compeed is hosting a giant igloo-shaped area that features a 3-D cinema of winter sport footage, including the ski jump and various snowboarding and freestyle events. A display shows the types of shoes that can cause the most blisters.
J&J also launched the Sport for Good Health program, helping to educate families on the health and wellness benefits of sports and physical activity. Educational brochures are being distributed at brand-sponsored kiosks throughout the city and at the J&J showcase in Piazza Solferino.
Other initiatives include products for sale at the Olympic Superstore and sponsor village; an outdoor ad campaign; a worldwide employee initiative and a partnership with Right to Play, an athlete-driven international humanitarian organization that uses sport and play as a tool for youth development in disadvantaged areas of the world.
Created in 1985, the TOP program, managed by the IOC, is the only sponsorship with the exclusive worldwide marketing rights to both Winter and Summer Games. Other TOP sponsors of the 2006 Winter Games are: Coca-Cola, Atos Origin, GE, Kodak, Lenovo, Manulife, McDonald’s, Omega, Panasonic, Samsung and Visa.
J&J has more than 200 operating companies and about 115,600 employees in 57 countries around the world.
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