Would Digicell boost our sports sponsorship in our country. Well i would think so? Wold like to know what you are thinking. Digicel could offer sponsorship deals Mon 20 Jan Cook Islands sportsmen and women could be in for major sponsorship opportunities if telecommunications giant Digicel buys a majority stake in Telecom Cook Islands. That is the view of Finance Minister Mark Brown and one backed up by Digicel’s track record in other countries, which includes its sponsorship of speedster Usain Bolt. Telecom New Zealand (TNZ) released a statement in late December saying it is considering selling its 60 per cent stake in Telecom Cook Islands (TCI). “No decision has been made whether or not to proceed. Telecom will be making no further comment during these considerations,” the company said. Brown has confirmed Digicel is the interested buyer and an update is expected soon. Digicel has refused to comment on the matter but has issued a general statement about its sponsorship involvement in other counties. Tui Ganilau, who handles marketing operations for Digicel Pacific, said the company sponsors Usain Bolt, “the world’s fastest man”. “Digicel is the lead sponsor of Caribbean, Central American and Pacific sports teams, including the Special Olympics teams throughout these regions.” She said the company also sponsors the West Indies cricket team and is the title sponsor of the Digicel Caribbean Cup. In the Pacific, Digicel sponsors the Manu Samoa 15’s rugby team and the Vanuatu cricket team, Ganilau said. Brown said Digicel, which operates in 31 countries, is “more amenable” to providing sponsorship of national teams because of its global exposure. “For them, there’s value in doing that but for Telecom (NZ) there isn’t because they’re not a global company.” However, Telecom has also been active in its involvement in Cook Islands sports. “Telecom’s overarching sports policy is to support events that bring sports tourism to the island,” said Damien Beddoes, TCI’s sales and marketing manager. “We are long time sponsors of the International Rugby 7s in Heaven Tournament and the Round Rarotonga Road Race.” Telecom is also major sponsor of the new Telecom Netball in Paradise tournament and has been growing its sponsorship of the Vaka Eiva event. Beddoes said Telecom is in discussions to sponsor the upcoming Oceania Athletics Championship to be held here later this year. “During the course of a year we support other sporting events that bring participants to the Cook Islands. It is our view that if we can support good quality events that develop into annual events then we achieve two goals – the development of sport in the Cook Islands, and the flow-through benefits to the economy via the tourism industry,” he said. TCI is run as a joint venture between TNZ and the Cook Islands government, with a 60 per cent and 40 per cent split, respectively.
Posted on: Sat, 25 Jan 2014 18:06:20 +0000