Can you really control who says what about the 2012 Olympics?

Posted on January 9, 2012 at 7:56 am UK

Reuters reports that 70,000 unpaid volunteers recruited for the London Olympics this summer have been warned not to give away breaking news about athletes or disclose the location of politicians and celebrities through online comments or pictures posted on social media sites.

Clearly, it makes sense to establish the ground rules on “social communicating,” as you would expect any responsible organization to do. What’s allowed and what isn’t. But also the positive: what’s encouraged, how to do it, from whom and where to get get help, etc.

Yet on the face of it according to the Reuters report, it’s rather black and white. I can’t imagine a more challenging task for the Olympics organizers than policing this blanket restriction. This is the age of mobile devices, point-and-click (or -tap), check in here, instant sharing online. It’s Twitter and Facebook and Google Plus and Foursquare. It’s about freeing up the means of connecting online with free wifi expected across London.

In any case, isn’t this “you must not” attitude somewhat counter to the spirit of inclusiveness and community that embody the Olympic games?

Writing in Forbes magazine, Ewan Spence gets to the heart of the matter:

[..] I wonder if the Olympics have an inkling of just how connected the games are going to be, how much activity there will be online, and how much conversation will be going on. And those most keen on the games have had their voice snuffed out. These rules bring on an image of a digital King Canute trying to hold back the flood of genuine opinion that will flow out of London in July and August this year.

Why not enable people to use their common sense? Seek out leaders within the volunteer community, Help them develop the guidance for their peers. I bet that would be highly effective and foster a far closer community spirit than “you must not.”

Let go the control, Olympics organizers.

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The 2012 Olympics: tech on a huge scale

Posted on October 13, 2011 at 1:36 pm UK

When you’re sitting in front of your widescreen HD television in July 2012 to enjoy two weeks of the 2012 Olympic Games, spare a thought for the huge technology infrastructure that will enable you to get images and sound as well as up-to-the-minute instant results, rankings and other metrics about each and every event, the participants and more, all without a second thought.

Mike Butcher interviews Gerry Pennell, CIO of London 2012, who provides some choice insights into the scope and scale of what he’s aiming to deliver between now and the opening ceremony at the London stadium on July 27, 2012 – that’s 288 days from now.

[...] people live tweeting a race is less of an issue to him than making sure the media gets all the results of the events in realtime. A lot of new software architecture has been created for this for the Olympics and there’s going to be a new Olympic Data Feed, an XML feed for the media and rights holders, which subsequent events will make use of. A new Commentator Information System (CIS) means realtime results rather than TV cameras picking up crowds cheering before the results appear on screen.
“We’ll also be developing some iOS, Android, RIM and Windows 7 applications [to] deliver various things” he says, adding that more will be revealed about this apps in due course.

[...] The sheer scale of the tech aspects of the Olympics have to be read to be believed.
The 16 days of the Olympics games and 12 days of the Paralympics will see 450 technologists keep 180 servers and 1160 PCs and laptops running 24/7. There are 92 buildings to be connected and BT is investing 640,000 man hours in the project. A volunteer portal created by Atos Origin will manage volunteer staff of up to 70,000 during the games. A radio trunked network from British company Airwave will will be used by stewards and the emergency services, and will act as a backup mobile network if anything goes wrong.

(Also read London warned Olympic games may mean mobile phone ‘capacity crunch’ in the Guardian last month.)

Worldwide IT partner Atos Origin says the first IT professionals are already working full time to design the IT infrastructure and systems that will process the accreditation badges for the 200,000 members of the Olympic Family; manage staffing rotas and deliver the results to the world in less than a second.

They add:

For the London 2012 Games, we predict that technology will play a bigger role in two areas. Firstly, in improving access to information as audiences worldwide expect more detailed and colourful information to be delivered, as it happens, to an increasingly complex network of channels. Secondly, the technology infrastructure will also enable a sustainable Olympic Games.

Think also of the opportunity for terrorists to cause disruption on a global scale: massive denial of service attacks, for instance, or introducing viruses or malware into the computer systems. Part of all the preparations include preparations now for cyber attack tests for the games’ computer systems that will take place next year.

Maybe the success of it all will be judged by how you don’t think about all that effort in the background leading up to the events next year.

Seamless is how it should be so you can concentrate on the sport.

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If FIFA looks like it’s in a crisis…

Posted on May 31, 2011 at 8:17 am UK

When is a crisis not really a crisis? The answer is simple, according to the president of FIFA, the world governing body of professional football. FIFA has been embroiled in a scandal of alleged bribery and corruption for months with no end in sight.

In an ill-tempered press conference yesterday, FIFA president Sepp Blatter – standing for re-election this week in a farcical-looking exercise where he is now the only candidate – insists that FIFA is not in crisis, despite the "great damage" done to its image by ongoing corruption allegations, according to a BBC report.

[...] "Football is not in a crisis, only some difficulties," said the Fifa president. Blatter brushed off suggestions, from the British government among others, that Wednesday’s presidential election – for which he is the only candidate – should be suspended. "If governments try to intervene then something is wrong," he said. "I think Fifa is strong enough that we can deal with our problems inside Fifa."

As the FT reports, FIFA’s sponsors aren’t so sanguine.

[...] Coca-Cola, a World Cup sponsor, said: “The allegations being raised are distressing and bad for the sport. We have every expectation that Fifa will resolve this situation in an expedient and thorough manner.”

Adidas has already voiced its concern, saying the negative publicity was “neither good for football nor for Fifa and its partners”.

The BBC has additional comments by Adidas:

[...] "Adidas enjoys a long-term, close and successful partnership with Fifa that we are looking forward to continuing. Adidas will be an official sponsor of Fifa World Cup 2014 in Brazil."

"Having said that, the negative tenor of the public debate around Fifa at the moment is neither good for football nor for Fifa and its partners."

When your sponsors start worrying in public, it seems to me that continuing to dismissively-insist that you’re having only a few "difficulties" is an act of reality-denial.

Unless someone makes a swift course correction – it may be too late for that, though – I’m watching for the impending car crash. Perhaps out of the wreckage something will emerge that is actually good for football.

[Update @ 12.45pm] The FT reports:

A third World Cup sponsor has publicly voiced concern at the crisis in Fifa, as England’s Football Association added to pressure on the sport’s governing body by calling for the postponement of Wednesday’s presidential election.

Emirates Airlines said it was “disappointed with the issues that are currently surrounding the administration of the sport”.

Things could be coming to a head (of some kind) as the FIFA presidential election is on June 1. That’s tomorrow.

[Update June 4] If you’ve been following this story, you’ll know that Sepp Blatter was re-elected as FIFA president on June 1.

Of all the many comments and opinions I’ve read about that, a leader in this week’s Economist assesses this crisis well, pulling no punches in its condemnation of a rotten organization. Its photo is worth much more than a thousand words.

The Economist offers a suggestion for two groups of people who could bring about change:

[...] Swiss parliamentarians could end the Zurich-based organisation’s favourable tax treatment. They should do so unless it cleans itself up. Then there are the commercial sponsors, who pay a big chunk of FIFA’s bills. They have shown steel before: after the Salt Lake City bidding scandal, the sponsors forced the International Olympic Committee to become more transparent. They should do so again, this time to get rid of Mr Blatter. Football deserves better than him.

Amen to that.

Story-telling the Audi way

Posted on May 25, 2011 at 12:07 pm UK

German car maker Audi has published a terrific video that tells a compelling story about teamwork, technology, individual courage and stamina – all requisite elements of what Audi looks for to win the Le Mans 24-Hour Race again this year (it takes place at Le Mans in France on June 11-12).

I imagine, too, that not coincidentally, such words fit with Audi’s brand attributes and values: Vorsprung durch Technik in action, as it were.

Brand Republic reports that Audi will premiere the two-and-a-half-minute film during the UEFA Champions League final which broadcasts live on TV in the UK (and elsewhere in Europe) this coming Bank Holiday weekend.

[...] The film, entitled ‘A day in the life of an Audi driver’, was created by Bartle Bogle Hegarty and is fronted by two-time Le Mans winner, Allan McNish.

It will be shown immediately before the kick-off during ITV and Sky Sports’ live coverage of Manchester United’s clash with Barcelona on Saturday (28 May).

Sky 3D will broadcast a 3D version of the film, which will then be rolled out to cinemas nationwide.

It is the first time Audi has run a 3D ad and the first time it has used a spokesperson in its promotional campaigns.

The 2:35 video is a real audio-visual treat, with an enhanced viewing experience if you watch it full-screen in high definition. (If you don’t see the embed below, watch it at YouTube.)

Brand Republic adds that Audi’s TV and cinema campaign leading up to the race next month will be supported by print activity, a special supplement in The Sunday Times and an app.

Audi has done well at Le Mans in recent years – since first entering the race in 1999, the car maker has won 9 times from 12 starts – including proving that, with the Audi R18 TDI, diesel engines can power cars to win races. (As the owner of an Audi diesel car – an Audi A4 TDI S-Line multitronic – I can attest to its stamina and race-like experiences from time to time!) And they’re looking good for this year’s race.

It doesn’t appear as though the 2011 Le Mans 24-Hour Race will be shown live on free-to-view TV in the UK, more’s the pity. Still, there’s a Facebook page and, of course, a Twitter handle and a hashtag: #24LM.

If you want to know more about “the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency,” the Wikipedia entry “24 Hours of Le Mans” is a great resource, with detailed information including the full history since the first race in 1923.

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Great endurance racing at Le Mans

Mirror images

Posted on June 14, 2010 at 7:04 am UK

Business confidence among UK firms has seen its biggest drop since 1995 due to the government’s rhetoric on spending cuts, a survey suggests says the BBC.

This news item brings to mind an apt analogy in The Economist this week: Bagehot’s comparison of the England football team and the 2010 World Cup with the economy and national outlook:

[...] It is not too much of a stretch to relate the deflated build-up to the World Cup in England this time to the wider, sombre atmosphere. The team represents a people less certain than they were a few years ago that global greatness is their destiny, and much less sure that they can afford it. As politicians exhort them to cultivate austerity, the rampant hedonism that seemed amusing and enviable in the pre-credit-crunch years, and which super-rich footballers epitomised, now seems tasteless. Austerity may not have touched the players themselves, but it is catching up with many domestic football clubs. Several are owned by post-Soviet oligarchs or carpetbagging Americans, and some are burdened with perilous levels of debt.

An added aspect to the picture, an event which occurred after The Economist was published, is England goalkeeper Robert Green’s fumbling in the goalmouth during Saturday’s match against the USA to let in a goal and which led to an eventual result of one-all.

In effect, an own goal.

Hopefully, that’s where the analogy stops.