Rio 2016 has announced that IT company Cisco has agreed a deal to become an official supporter of the Brazilian city’s staging of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Under the terms of the deal, the US firm becomes the fifth official supporter of the Olympic Games and the second firm to also partner the Paralympics. Cisco will fulfil networking equipment and enterprise server requirements for the two events.
Cisco technology products and services will support the foundation of the network for the Olympics. The network will be developed in partnership with several other International Olympic Committee and Rio 2016 partners. As part of the agreement, Cisco will provide networking infrastructure for the event, including all wired and wireless LAN, IP routers, as well as the hardware necessary for network security, data centre networking, and network management systems. Cisco will also provide the data centre enterprise servers.
Cisco said in a statement: “As an official supporter of the Rio 2016 Olympics and Paralympic Games, Cisco will provide network equipment and servers to serve the unique needs of the Olympic Games and spectators, leveraging Cisco Connected Sports Network Equipment, Cisco Connected Stadium and Cisco Connected Stadium High Density Wi-Fi, and industry expertise focused on transforming fan experiences.”
The company added that a key component of its partnership with Rio 2016 is the opportunity to help drive innovation. Working in collaboration with city government authorities, Cisco said it will help to develop technology infrastructure that will serve the city and citizens of Rio de Janeiro, beyond the Olympic Games. The new contract follows on from Cisco’s role as an official supporter of the London 2012 Olympics. It joins Sadia, Batavo, Skol and EY as an official supporter of the 2016 Olympics. Cisco and Sadia also have contracts for the Paralympic Games.