Sochi's First Sponsor Infringement Lawsuit Has Been Filed

Well, that was quick. To celebrate the start of the 2014 Winter Olympics, the Canadian Olympic Committee has filed a lawsuit against The North Face and parent company, VF. The lawsuit claims that the outerwear apparel maker infringed on Olympic trademarks and attempted to mislead customers into believing that North Face was an official sponsor in the run-up to the Sochi games with its "Villagew...

What You Won't See At Today's Opening Ceremonies

iPhones. At least that's the rumor that's been floating around the past couple of days. Samsung reportedly asked that athletes (who were all given a Samsung Galaxy 3 as part of the company's sponsorship activation) not bring their competitor's phones to today's/tonight's opening ceremonies or if they must, cover up the apple logo. All of which kind of makes sense, what with Samsung shelling out...

Team Shoots Down $10MM Sponsorship Proposition

Ashley Madison can't buy a Valentine's date with popular australian professional rugby team, the Cronulla Sharks. The club has responded in no uncertain terms to a recent $10 million sponsorship proposal from the adultry matchmaking service, writing "even if it’s $50 million the Sharks still say NO!" Ouch. "We have built a strong commercial platform for the future, and yes we would be inter...

Toy Maker Teams Up With SI For 'Unapologetic' Swimsuit Issue

SI's latest reinvention of the iconic swimsuit issue? A new marketing partnership with Mattel that will see the $3 billion Barbie brand prominently featured in this year's issue. The deal, the latest in a number of high profile partnerships, is part of Mattel's new #Unapologetic marketing campaign. “Unapologetic” is a word that Mattel executives use internally, Mattel SVP of Marketing Lisa M...

Chobani Gives Up On Getting Yogurt to Sochi

Chobani, a USOC sponsor, has given up on its quest to ship its yogurt to U.S. athletes in Sochi. Instead, the upstate New York company will donate about 5,000 cups of yogurt that had been detained at Newark Liberty International Airport to local food banks. 'We decided that if we didn't have a resolution by today, we were going to donate the products,'' Peter McGuinness, Chobani's chief market...

NFL Logos + Sponsorship = Artwork?

NYC designer Ryan K Fishman recently re-mixed all 32 NFL logos with corporate images. Not likely to happen anytime soon, but definitely interesting to see what could be with a few corporate tweaks and a boatload of $$$. Check it out: logoremix.tumblr.com. Here's a preview... H/T: Deadspin

Press Pass For Sponsor Mentions A Big No, No Says Journalist

PR folks and journalists don't always get along, but the dance gets ratcheted up in a big way when high paying corporate sponsors are involved. Sponsors that more often than not would like to see their name in press, too. So should sponsor mentions ever be a condition for the press pass? That's the topic Telegraph columnist Tim Walker took on when he was invited (seemingly with strings attached...

P&G Recently Sponsored A Baby Birth And The Results Were Pretty Amazing...

Procter & Gamble's Dreft brand recently broke some new ground by sponsoring the birth of Kevin Jonas' (of Jonas Bros. fame) newborn. In exchange for an undisclosed sum, the laundry detergent for baby clothes brand received first dibs on exclusive content from the expecting couple, which it then Dreft-ized and distributed via the brand's various social media platforms. By selling sponsorsh...

UFC Headed For A Fight Over Standard Uniforms?

UFC fighters may get a standard uniform in the not so distant future, just like other professional sports, if a new plan being explored comes to fruition. While a streamlined approach to uniforms could help level the playing field when it comes to fighter sponsorships with revenue being more equitably divided from larger league-wide deals, not every fighter is happy about the prospect of a unif...

Here Are Some Of The Sponsors That Scored In Sochi

Despite the political angst and looming threat of terrorist threats, according to YouGov's Brand Index several sponsors still managed to make a big impact in Sochi. Note that these sentiment scores were published last week and are not final as the games just concluded this past weekend. Perhaps most interestingly though, despite the controversy over Russia's anti-gay laws, the Index reports...