Representatives from the organizing committee of the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games and Alibaba Group shake hands after signing a cooperation agreement on Dec 10. [Photo provided to ehangzhou.gov.cn]

"We hope Alibaba will use its advanced information technology and cloud services to empower the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, enabling athletes, officials, media reporters and millions of viewers from across Asia to feel the unique charm of the Hangzhou Asian Games," said Chen Weiqiang, vice-mayor of Hangzhou and deputy secretary-general of the organizing committee for the games, at a signing ceremony held in Hangzhou on Dec 10.

Alibaba Group and its affiliate Alipay signed up to become official partners of the Hangzhou Asian Games at the ceremony.

Hangzhou Vice-Mayor Chen Weiqiang signed cooperation deals with Alibaba Chief Marketing Officer Dong Benhong and Ant Finance's Chief Marketing Officer Peng Yijie.

Zhang Yong, CEO of Alibaba, said that Alibaba will provide help for the organizing committee of the Asian Games in the form of information technology, cloud services, financial technology and ecological preservation.

Alipay will also work to make the games as digital as possible, Zhang added.

During the games, a mini-app will be launched providing 18 intelligent services for visitors, including buying tickets, booking hotels, and searching for tourist destinations.

Hundreds of digital service stations outside Hangzhou will be set up to meet the online and offline demand for game-watching, shopping and traveling.

The signing ceremony also saw the launch of the "public forest of the Hangzhou Asian Games" on Ant Forest, which was launched on the Alipay mobile app by Ant Financial Services Group in August 2016. 

Ant Forest is designed to reduce carbon emissions by giving users points every time they walk, take public transport or do a variety of other low-carbon activities through their Alipay account.

Points can then be used to help plant and nurture a tree in a virtual forest on their cellphone; once the tree is large enough it can be converted into a real tree.

According to a news release during the signing ceremony, the official flagship store of the games was also launched on Tmall, an online shopping platform owned by Alibaba. People can buy more than 60 varieties of games-related products on the online shop. 

To date, the organizing committee has signed up seven official service partners.

The "public forest of the Hangzhou Asian Games" initiative is launched on Ant Forest, a scheme on the Alipay mobile app encouraging users to live a low-carbon lifestyle. [Photo provided to ehangzhou.gov.cn]