What Cisco’s TORONTO 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games partnership will mean for Ontario
3 min read
Earlier today, Cisco Canada became the Official Information and Communications Technology Provider of the TORONTO 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games. This partnership means our network technology will be providing voice, video and data to TORONTO 2015, helping to create the most connected and fan-friendly Pan Am/Parapan Am Games in history.
Our network infrastructure will bring together wireless, network security, collaboration, TelePresence, unified computing and cloud services at all stages of the Games. These efforts, which are a key part of our Cisco Connected Sports initiative, will enable fans to stay connected to TORONTO 2015 events, and each other, like never before.
The whole idea of Cisco Connected Sports is to use the power of the network to transform sporting and entertainment events around the globe for the better. Since the proliferation of high-definition TVs and digital video recorders, sports and entertainment organizations have had to work harder to make the in-venue experience more compelling for fans than the home theatre.
This has been a challenge, because traditional sporting events and stadiums typically lack the integration between the numerous business systems and the networks that support the event. For example, several different wireless networks might support ticketing, employee collaboration, video delivery, fan experience apps and data delivery.
Our goal is to simplify network connectivity; connecting venues, communities and people across major events such as the TORONTO 2015 Games. We’ve done this at world class sporting facilities such as Yankee Stadium in New York and we’ve done it at massive global events such as the London 2012 Olympic Games.
But this just isn’t about partnering with the Games to execute a world class sporting event.
Our focus is to build a technology legacy that will be felt in Toronto and much of Ontario for years to come. We want to promote innovation, sustainability, productivity and economic development long after the Games are over.
To do this, we’ll build a partner ecosystem to support our technology planning and deployment efforts at the TORONTO 2015 Games. This will provide a huge boost to solution providers, integrators and application developers in the area who will see increased economic development opportunities as a result of the Pan Am/Parapan AmGames. We think it will be tremendously valuable for these Ontario organizations and technology professionals to work on a sporting event that will be featured on the global stage.
We will also work with the Province of Ontario as well as universities and colleges to support technology projects and develop educational programming to build future innovation.We will work with the Toronto 2015 Pan/Parapan Am Games Organizing Committee (TO2015) and other organizations to use our video technology to offers programs to Canadian schools that will excite our youth around health and STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) over the next three years leading up to the games.
This summer, at the London 2012 Olympic Games, Cisco’s network helped connect fans and athletes byintegrating voice, video, data and cloud services. In addition to helping run one of the best Olympics in history, Cisco committed to encouraging young people across the UK to engage in STEM subjects and pursue a career in technology. We even created a math and science curriculum for the region’s STEM program.
Through Cisco House – which showcased how a dynamic connected environment can increase productivity, reduce costs and altogether improve the way people can use technology to innovate – along with investments in Cisco Network Academies across the country, we left a legacy that students and researchers will benefit from for years to come.
The plan for the TORONTO 2015 Games is to build upon this strategy and use the investment, infrastructure and inspiration of the Games to promote innovation, education, productivity and overall economic development across the province of Ontario.
Obviously, with three years still to go before the athletes arrive and the Games kick off, we have a lot of work to do. As we move forward with our preparation for TORONTO 2015, we will keep you updated on our progress and on the investments we plan on making to the community. To keep updated on all the work we’re doing with TO2015, please follow us on Twitter, visit the Cisco Canada website and look for more blog posts.
This is just the beginning, so stay tuned!
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