Winter Olympics: Alibaba Looks to Digitalize Games Being Held in Pyeongchang

Alibaba Group, the only Chinese top-tier sponsor of the Olympic Games, will seek to help the sporting event undergo a digital transformation through the use of its most advanced cloud computing technology.

Digitalising the Games will enable closer interactions between fans and athletes and help ensure that the sporting event continues to be successful, Alibaba founder and executive chairman Jack Ma Yun said on Saturday at the opening of the company’s technology showcase in Pyeongchang, South Korea, where the 2018 Winter Games are being held.

“Our long-term partnership with the Olympic Games is the ultimate showcase for Alibaba, both in terms of what we stand for as a company and how we can use our technology to reimagine the Olympic Games for the digital era,” said Jack Ma. “Like the Olympic Games, Alibaba believes in creating a level playing field, giving everyone the chance to compete on the global stage.” Mr Ma was quoted on Olympics.

“The IOC is entering a new era of digitalisation which we are doing in partnership with Alibaba,” said IOC President Thomas Bach. “Alibaba is offering us a unique platform to expand the appeal of the Olympic Games and to keep our fans close. I am impressed by the company’s forward-looking, efficiently-driven work and look forward to 10 more years of partnership and even more success.” Mr Bach was quoted on Olympics.

Alibaba is sponsoring popular sporting events such as the Olympics and soccer tournaments to raise its global profile. The Hangzhou-based company counts almost 600 million people using its shopping apps every month and has operations in more than 200 countries, South China Morning Post reported.

Alibaba set up a sports arm in 2015 to promote sports and in 2016 announced it will invest US$100 million over the next 10 years to popularise rugby in China. In November 2017, soccer’s world governing body Fifa named Alibaba Cloud as the official presenting partner for the Fifa Club World Cup until 2022, the newspaper reported.