• Ad Age, Monday, October 15, 2007 10 AM

Kodak will split from its long relationship as an official sponsor of the Olympics after the 2008 games in Beijing, ending more than a century of involvement in the event. Kodak, which has been one of the games' biggest sponsors since 1986, is moving away as part of a larger transformation into a broad imaging company.

The company plans to invest the millions they will save on Olympic sponsorships into marketing efforts like the "Kodak Gallery Scan Van," which drives around helping consumers digitize old photos, along with the "Inspiration Tour," which showcases its printing and scanning products at state fairs and similar venues.

Kodak is just one of the major sponsors to distance its self from the often ratings-challenged Olympics. In August, General Motors announced its own departure after 2008, a big hit as the automaker typically spends $100 million on the games. For its part, GM says it wants to differentiate its brands better by spreading them over multiple sporting categories and venues.

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