A multimillion-dollar deal between collapsing telecom giant Nortel and the 2010 Winter Olympics is secure.
Both the Olympic organizing committee and Nortel say despite filing for bankruptcy, the company will be able to come through on its supplier commitment to the Vancouver Games.
Nortel signed an official supplier agreement with the Games in 2007, a deal valued somewhere between $3 and $15 million, to supply technology infrastructure.
The company says it has already delivered on most of its commitment, and the organizing committee says the remaining pieces will fall into place by May.
But the agreement the company has with the London 2012 Games is less secure as they just announced that partnership mid-way through last year.
The organizing committee for 2012 says it's monitoring the situation.
More financial woes
The Vancouver Olympic organizing committee has been watching warily as some of its domestic sponsors have been grappling with financial troubles, including General Motors.
In November, health care and pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson announced it won't be renewing its lucrative global sponsorship deal with the International Olympics Committee.
The health care company says it met its goals during this summer's 2008 Beijing Games and has decided to move on.
Johnson & Johnson says the decision means the company won't be a sponsor for the Vancouver Olympics, but it doesn't rule out a connection between the company and the Games altogether.
Weathering the storm
Organizers for the 2010 Games admit they're not immune to global economic uncertainty.
Speaking to CTV News on Jan. 1, VANOC CEO John Furlong told CTV that organizers will have to make some tough financial decisions in 2009.
"None of us had any idea the global economy would change so rapidly, and that's really changed everything," Furlong said.
But he's confident that sponsors will weather the economic storm.
"Most of the companies that signed on did so because of the leveraging power of the Games, and the brand and something that matters so much to Canada and I don't think any of that has changed," he said.
"At one time, it was only one of many things and now it might be the one thing that provides real hope and inspiration and a real sense of focus and I believe our partners are living up to their promises."
But the Committee's Chairman of the Board, Jack Poole, admits they can't be complacent.
"It's a nervous environment and it's one that demands caution and extra diligence," he said.
With files from The Canadian Press
