Many of these key aspects have been developed over time by partners who have participated in the TOP Programme since its inception, creating a matchless operational resource for the successful staging of the Games. These operational advantages also ensure that each Games is more efficient than the last. In addition to the direct investment of funding and goods and services, Olympic commercial partners also allocate significant budget and expertise towards helping to promote the Games and the Olympic values around the world. TOP Partners typically spend up to three times the value of their sponsorship fees to promote their association with the Olympic Movement. This level of commitment gives the Olympic Movement a reach that the IOC simply could not achieve alone, and is also essential in cultivating support for the Olympic Movement's educational, cultural, environmental and youth initiatives. " Without our sponsors, the Olympic Games would not be what they are today. The partners' support allows more athletes from more countries to compete in the Games, and they deliver the services and resources that are the driving force of the Olympic Movement." Gerhard Heiberg, Chairman, IOC Marketing Commission 40IOC Marketing Report – Beijing 2008 Chapter FourSponsorship " The sheer variety and creativity of the initiatives employed by our partners is staggering. You can't be an Olympic sponsor by being passive. It is always a dynamic process and that dynamism has kept the Games on the leading edge of marketing." Timo Lumme, Director, IOC Television and Marketing Services