• Ad Age, Wednesday, August 8, 2007 10:30 AM

General Motors will not renew its sponsorships of the U.S. Olympic Team with NBC when its deals expire after the end of the 2008 Games in Beijing. Cut in 1997, the multi-year contract was worth an estimated $900 million, with GM spending $300 million to be the official domestic car and truck sponsor of the U.S. Olympic Team, along with $600 million for category exclusivity on NBC and its affiliates' TV and online coverage.

"Our marketing strategies have changed, and our media landscape has changed," says a spokeswoman for the automaker, who notes the company can reach the same audience in ways that are more flexible and frequent than an Olympic sponsorship. "All the media spend[ing] happens virtually over [a] 17-day time span," she says, adding that cost-cutting was not behind the decision.

Further, Olympics that take place overseas make it hard for GM to do much on-site. In 2004, the company was the largest advertiser on NBC's broadcast and cable nets, with more than 400 ad units run during the Games -- 200 from its Chevy alone, more than 10 times that marque's typical two-week prime-time presence.

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