LOCOG recruit Cisco after ending Nortel partnership

By Martyn Herman

LONDON (Reuters) - London 2012 Olympics organisers said Friday they had terminated their partnership with bankrupt Canadian telecoms giant Nortel.

The London organising committee (LOCOG) have moved quickly, however, to plug a potential multi-million pounds hole in their sponsorship revenue by naming Cisco as their official network infrastructure partner with immediate effect.

As a Tier One partner Nortel, who filed for bankruptcy in January, would have contributed around 40 million pounds to LOCOG's kitty as well as providing the bulk of the vast array of communications equipment needed to stage an Olympic Games.

Last month U.S. creditors announced a plan to sell off various parts of Nortel Networks such as its wireless technology business, a move that prompted LOCOG to seek an alternative partner in order to meet its tight deadlines.

A LOCOG spokesman confirmed that Cisco would be a Tier Two partner and that some shortfall in revenue was expected from the loss of Nortel. Tier Two partnerships are typically worth around 20 million pounds to LOCOG who have set a target of raising 650 million pounds in domestic sponsorship.

"We part with Nortel on good terms," LOCOG chief executive Paul Deighton said Friday. "Nortel acknowledges our fixed deadlines and our desire to have a single supplier for our entire network infrastructure have been impacted by Nortel's decision to move towards standalone businesses.

"This is in no way a reflection of their capabilities -- this is all about meeting our fixed deadlines."

Despite the economic downturn LOCOG has already raised around 500 million pounds in domestic sponsorship with heavyweight companies such as British Airways, EDF Energy and BT already signed up.