Tuesday, 19th August 2008

OLYMPIC BITS

* London 2012 organisers are facing calls to cut the length of the opening ceremony after athletes in Beijing spent up to six hours on their feet. Coe acknowledged the concerns, but said the ceremony remained a key part of the Olympic experience for many athletes. He said: “I never went to an opening ceremony when I was running - I was confronted with seven races in nine days and thought that standing around for six or seven hours and being bussed halfway around the city was not something conducive with the previous 10 years’ preparation. We will look at it for London and I will do what I can to make sure that the opening ceremony reflects an athletes’ parade with the most benign circumstances for them.” Sport Briefing, 18th Aug 2008

* The Chinese Customs Office has enlisted the help of top film star Jackie Chan in an effort to stop the sale of unauthorised Olympic Games goods. A public service advertising campaign called “Say no to fake, say no to pirating” has been aired on a number of airlines since the start of August. Unofficial clothes, shoes, bags, bicycles and souvenirs have been confiscated in China and a stock of nearly 37,000 shirts with “Beijine2008” on the front. 227 batches of goods, including 630,000 individual products that infringe Olympic Games copyrights, have been found so far. The confiscated goods have a street value of several hundred thousand US dollars. Sport Briefing, 18th Aug 2008

* An injury to China’s biggest athletics star, Liu Xiang has halted his defence of the 110m hurdles Olympic title before it even started, leaving a large roster of sponsors without their day in the sun. The Athens 2004 hurdles champion hurt his Achilles tendon during a false start by another athlete, pulling up after just a few metres and hobbling from the track in front of a capacity crowd stunned into silence. As the Games face of Nike, Coca-Cola, Visa, China Mobile and Yili, Liu earned a reported 163.2 million yuan (US$23.9 million) in 2007, propelling him to third on Forbes’ Famous Chinese People list. However, his failure on the track will limit the amount of exposure these sponsors gain. Brand Republic Asia, 18th Aug 2008

Olympics Proves a Hit in Southeast Asia - Except Indonesia

The opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics saw a spike in TV ratings in Singapore and Malaysia - but flopped in Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest TV market. In Singapore, TV viewership for the Olympics opening ceremony showed a marked increase on the Athens Olympics, with the biggest spike registered by 25 to 44-year-old men, according to TNS. The highest ratings were registered among children aged four to 14, while teens and young adults aged between 15 and 24 had the lowest ratings. Channel 5 was a clear winner, registering 47% audience share.

In Malaysia, a survey by ACNielsen showed a dramatic increase in ratings and channel share for the terrestrial station RTM1, on which the opening ceremony was telecast. RTM1’s channel share shot up from six per cent to 32% during the opening ceremony. All other channels, including the most popular, TV3, lost viewers to RTM1. Viewership data for pay-TV channel Astro was not available, but it is expected to have enjoyed similar increases in audience.

Meanwhile, in Indonesia, only 242,000 people tuned in to watch the opening ceremony on national network TVRI. The channel's share was a paltry 2.4%. The Athens Olympics registered better ratings since they were shown on a commercial terrestrial network. TVRI is the non-commercial government-run network in Indonesia and typically attracts small audiences. Brand Republic Asia, 18th Aug 2008

Doordashan Fails to Capture Key Moments

The entire country has been rejoicing the victory of Abhinav Bindra's Olympic gold, but there has been considerable displeasure from several quarters of viewers in India. Reason? They have been unable to witness some key moments in the ongoing Olympic Games, which has been broadcasted by Doordarshan in India.

Baskaran, the former captain of the Indian hockey team that won the gold in 1980 Moscow Olympics, who has been following the Beijing games closely since it began, says, "The coverage given by Doordarshan to the Indian sportspersons is inadequate. For the first time in so many years, we won a gold medal but the publicity from the official broadcaster was pathetic."

Adam Sinclair, a hockey player from Coimbatore and an Olympian who participated in the Athens 2004 says, "The Olympics is without a doubt, the biggest sporting event in the world. You need able commentators who can grab the attention of the viewers and keep them riveted to the game. I have been able to detect several technical mistakes when the commentators speak about any given game."

Sinclair adds, "DD's coverage of sports relevant to India leaves a lot to be desired. Moreover, on the first day of the Games, they telecast a cycling race for about 30 minutes and just a few minutes before the finale, they switched to a different segment of another sport. I found this frustrating as the last minutes are the most exciting in any game. Doordarshan should have co-ordinated the proceedings better." When Televisionpoint.com, tried to contact Doordarshan, we were told that the officials concerned with the Olympics were in Beijing and were not available for comment.

However, a source who did not wish to be identified said, "I feel very strongly about this issue. It's purely lack of co-ordination among the powers that be. We missed out on giving proper coverage to Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore at the Olympics this year. A big contingent from Doordarshan has gone to Beijing, sadly it's not showing in the quality of broadcast that's coming to India." Televisionpoint, 18th August 2008

Study Criticises IOC Sponsorship Policies

Ads running on NBC's coverage of the Beijing Games tout Coca-Cola's 80-year association with the Olympics. McDonald's ads say it has been an Olympic sponsor for 40 years. But if public interest group Commercial Alert had its way, both companies, among others, including Anheuser-Busch, one of three beer sponsors at this year's Games, would be barred from all marketing ties to the Olympics. Washington D.C.-based Commercial Alert teamed with Multinational Monitor, which tracks the activities of big corporations, on a new study called "The Commercial Games." The study is highly critical of the sponsorship and advertising policies of the International Olympic Committee and the various sports federations and national committees under its auspices.

The groups argue that the marketing of junk foods, sodas, fast-food chains and alcoholic beverages should be eliminated from the Games. Their reasoning: such products conflict with the stated purpose of the Olympics, which they say is to "celebrate healthful living." Promoting such products in the widely watched Olympics, the study says, is "unhealthful," and particularly inappropriate "for an event with enormous appeal to children."

Others took issue with the report, including McDonald's, which objected to the study's labeling of its product as "unhealthy." A rep said the company had gone to great lengths over the last five or six years to offer balanced meals that include fruits and vegetables and other healthy edibles. He also said sponsorship deals like McDonald's help make the Games possible (along, of course, with lucrative TV rights deals).

Brand consultant Robert Passikoff, CEO of New York-based Brandkeys, agreed with one assertion in the report: that the Games, with a total of 63 "official" sponsors, are probably over-commercialized. That said, he added: "The question is why should they cut back? They're making an awful lot of money on it. Why should anyone other than the consumers and the marketing folks be the arbiter of what's right and wrong? No research group should have the right to tell them who to do business with; who put them in charge?"

It is true that the Olympics attracts a huge audience of both adults and children. Nielsen ratings for the first five days of coverage showed an average audience of 31.3 million total viewers. Last Tuesday, about 1.3 million kids aged 6 to 11 tuned in to NBC's prime-time coverage, according to Nielsen estimates.

The study, released Aug. 6, also chastises the IOC for what the groups believe is its lack of concern that some companies with marketing ties to the Games rely on so-called "sweatshops" that offer substandard wages and working conditions to produce goods. It specifically cited Nike and Adidas as companies that haven't taken effective steps to eliminate sweatshop conditions within their supply chains. Nike and Adidas did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

The study also criticizes the IOC for awarding "monopolies" to sponsors such as Visa and Coke that limit spectator choices at the Games themselves. Only non-alcoholic beverages marketed by Coca-Cola are available at the Olympics, and Visa is the only credit card accepted there. The study characterizes Coca-Cola and McDonald's as companies that "run businesses centered around unhealthy food." Each company paid about $70 million for its current sponsorship rights, the study estimates. Arguing that both agreements are inappropriate, it concludes, "Junk foods contribute to obesity, a major public health problem not just in the United States but in many countries around the world including China. . . . The Olympics should not lend its name and aura to help promote more consumption of these unhealthy products."

Neither the IOC nor Coke responded to requests for comment. But McDonald's strongly protested being labeled by the study as a purveyor of unhealthy foods and argued that it has a proper role as an Olympic sponsor. "It makes the games possible," a McDonald's rep told Adweek. "The organizers and the athletes recognize that we have wide choices and variety across our menu to design a very well-balanced meal." The rep agreed that "millions of kids see our ads," which he argued convey appropriate messages. One of the ads airing during NBC's coverage of the Beijing Games features children playing soccer and then being treated to Happy Meals with chicken, apples and milk. (The apples come with an optional "low-fat" caramel dipping sauce.)

The IOC does ban sponsorships with liquor brands -- a prohibition that Commercial Alert and Multinational Monitor argue should be extended to all alcoholic products, including beer and wine. Their study quotes George Hacker, director of the Washington-based Alcohol Policies Project, a unit of the Center for Science in the Public Interest. Sports, he said, "is a fundamental building block of character building and of youth development. . . . These values are fundamentally hijacked by beer companies when they get closely associated with sports, be they Olympic or college or even professional. It belies the true value of sports." Anheuser-Busch, an Olympic sponsor since 1984, did not immediately respond to calls for comment.

The study also concluded that the Olympics, with a record 63 sponsors this year, are over-commercialized: "The Olympic ideals of promoting authentic culture and education have been drowned beneath a sea of sponsorship and marketing arrangements." It recommended that the IOC undertake its own examination of its sponsorship policies with the objective of scaling back the overall number. Sports City, Sport Business, Adweek, 18th Aug 2008

Nike and adidas Battle for Multibillion-Dollar Prize

When China's biggest sports star takes to the starting blocks this week, the nation will pray for him to end the race with a gold medal around his neck. But executives are more worried about the rest of Liu Xiang's attire. He will cross the finishing line of the 100 metres hurdles with a swoosh on his shoes - but if he makes it to the podium, he will have three stripes on his sleeve.

Never mind the athletics. The real battle in Beijing is not the struggle to top the medal table, but the multibillion-dollar fight between two giant brands intent on conquering the fastest-growing sportswear market in the world. Adidas and Nike have invested unprecedented sums in wooing Chinese consumers during the Olympics. The German firm is estimated to have spent $190m (£100m) on sponsorship and associated marketing; its US rival has stumped up close to $150m.

Adidas is sponsoring the games itself and the Chinese Olympic committee. Torchbearers, officials and volunteers are all clad in the brand; so too are Chinese champions. "Every single Chinese athlete winning a medal will be in Adidas on the podium," says Paul Pi, vice-president of marketing for Adidas China. But Nike has fought back by sponsoring the Chinese teams in 22 of 28 Olympic sports. "The moment for Chinese fans is when the gun goes off and when he crosses the finish line. If Liu's in first place, the whole nation will go completely insane with excitement - and he will be wearing swooshes," says Nike spokesman Charlie Brookes.

At the root of this rivalry is a market a fraction the size of the US - but growing at 30% annually for the past five years. Pi concluded, "If you want to lead globally, you have to lead in China." Nike says it passed the $1bn sales mark this spring, a year ahead of schedule. Adidas says it has leapfrogged its rival in becoming market leader by the start of the games, with sales up 60% in the first half of 2008 - though its claim is based on factors such as brand image. It is "on course" to reach $1.5bn by 2010.

Meanwhile, Nike's "Courage" spots emphasise individual achievement. "For us, it's about connecting with athletes: we make products that make them perform better and then build on the excitement that creates," says Brookes, citing the ultralight Hyperdunk shoe for Kobe Bryant or Asafa Powell's Zoom Aerofly. He pointed out that ordinary consumers benefit from the the same technology.

The real race is outside the Olympic zone. Adidas, which is opening stores at the rate of two a day, will have 5,000 shops in China by the end of the year. Its new store in Sanlitun - several miles away from the Bird's Nest stadium - opened last month and is the largest in the world, with 3,170 sq m of retail space over four floors. There is a rooftop basketball court, a smoothie bar, computer terminals to customise trainers and exercise stations. A gallery showcases the footwear Adidas has made for the games, from boxing boots to slides for divers - all presented in glass cases and lit with artistic reverence.

Nike has slightly fewer outlets, and its main store is a mere 1,208 sq m, but its Wangfujing location is one of Beijing's premier shopping hubs. It also boasts a gallery in the 798 art district, where the current exhibition traces the brand's development - and not a single item is for sale.

Meanwhile, the two companies face competition from sporting icon turned entrepreneur Li Ning. The three-time gold medallist demonstrated his gymnastic flair as he "ran" around the top of the Bird's Nest Stadium before lighting the Olympic cauldron - albeit dressed in Adidas. But to many young Chinese people he is as well known for his eponymous sportswear brand: sales reached $750bn last year. After his appearance, his Hong Kong-listed stock rose 3.5%.

But its appeal may be flagging for shoppers like Yang Yang, who visited Sanlitun's Adidas store shod in Nike trainers this week. "I do wear some Chinese brands - mostly Li Ning," said the 26-year-old sports teacher. "They're a lot cheaper, but the style and technology of Adidas and Nike are better. I usually buy Nike for running, but a lot of the Adidas casualwear looks really good." Rhoads believes that consumers like Yang will leave both Adidas and Nike winners for many years to come. "This market is phenomenal," he said. "China has 400 million under-20s who are watching the Olympics and falling in love with sports. Most people in China still are not playing sport. When it does catch up - wow!" Sports City, 18th Aug 2008


DATA BOX

IPTV Equipment Posts Strong Q2 Growth
Report by Synergy Research published on Advanced-Television, 19th August 2008

Synergy Research’s Q2 2008 IPTV Market Share report shows the overall IPTV equipment market growing 30.3% year over year. The fastest growing IPTV market segment was Core Router IPTV, which grew 37.9% year over year. The Synergy report finds that IPTV equipment sales continue to be driven by upgrades to Carrier networks, especially at the Edge, handling the surge in subscriber and traffic growth. Synergy anticipates Worldwide IPTV subscribers are set to increase substantially over the next two years and approach close to 40 million by 2010. Synergy research further finds that IPTV deployments in China and South Korea are developing at an accelerated pace. In Europe, Service Providers continue to heavily invest in IPTV deployments.

Percentage of Foreign Players on the Rise in Europe
Annual Review of Euro Football Players’ Labour Market published on Sport Briefing, 18th Aug 2008

The percentage of foreign footballers playing for clubs in the top flight of each of the five main European leagues is continuing to increase, according to the third Annual Review of the European Football Players’ Labour Market. The report, which is the result of a partnership between the International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES) and the University of Franche-Comté in France, found that foreigners made up 42.4% of all players employed by English, Spanish, Italian, German and French top-tier clubs during the 2007-08 season. The percentage represents a 3.5% increase over the previous season.

The Barclays (sponsor) Premier League in England had the highest percentage of foreign players (59.5%), with the figure reaching an average of 52.6% among the top five clubs in each of the leagues. Interestingly, more than half of the strikers (50.5%) are foreign across the five leagues, which explains why foreign players scored more than half of the total number of goals (51.9%). Non-European players now represent 50% of the total number of foreign players, whereas this percentage was only around 30% before the introduction of freedom of movement in European football. The study from the Professional Football Players Observatory (PFPO) also found that the percentage of locally trained players on clubs’ books has continued to decrease - something which FIFA president Sepp Blatter has been keen to point out with his 'six plus five' overseas player quota proposal.

According to the study, the average age of players employed by the clubs has remained from the 2006-07 season. The league with the oldest players is Italy’s Serie A TIM (sponsor) with an average age of 26.5 years, while the clubs with the youngest players are found in France’s Ligue 1 Orange (sponsor) with an average age of 24.7 years. Le Mans in France had the youngest squad of all of those studied with an average age of 22.6 years.


DID YOU KNOW?

The gold medals awarded at the Beijing Olympics are mostly made of silver, the Games' organising committee admitted Monday. Each medal contains only six percent pure gold, committe secretary-general Wang Wei said. The rest is silver, he added. Wang dismissed as "a joke" claims made by internet bloggers that the medals contained lead. The raw materials for the medals came from Australia and were vetted by a state-approved testing authority to ensure they were indeed precious metals, Wang said. News.WebIndia123, 18th August 2008


SPORTS SHORTS

* Time Broadband Services Pvt Ltd (TBSL) has announced that it will launch a slew of TV channels on GPRS-enabled mobile phone. By the end of this month, TBSL will introduce 15 free-to-air, digital entertainment and news channels on cellular phones. TBSL has plans to expand its digital bouquet to 99 mobile TV channels of varied content with interactive games and value added services. TBSL is funded by Dubai Ventures and has achieved the financial closure via second round of foreign direct investment for pan-India IPTV rollout. Indiantelevision, 18th August 2008

* Pakistan's PTCL has launched Smart TV, an IPTV service available to broadband and telephony subscribers in a bundled package. The service will initially be available to households in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad and will be extended to other cities and towns over time. Features of the TV services include time-shifting, parental controls and video-on-demand, as well as a wide range of music, sports, news, entertainment and children's channels. Three bundles are available: 0.5 Mbps for PKR 1,499, 1 Mbps for PKR 2,299 and 2 Mbps for 5,299. Customers can buy a set-top box upfront for PKR 9,995 or pay in installments of PKR 500 over 24 months. The first five on-demand videos are offered free, and additional titles cost PLR 50 each. Telecompaper, 18th August 2008

* Mobile advertising took a big hit at China’s Focus Media when it agreed to ban mobile ad spam-- slashing expected 2008 mobile revenue by $40 million. In the release, the company says it has disposed of or is discontinuing nine subsidiaries focused on the “push based mobile advertising business.” Revenue for those operations dropped to $400,000 in Q2 from $11.3 million in Q1. MocoNews.net, 17th August 2008

* Bharti Airtel, revealed that it’s subscriber base crossed the 75 million mark and became the fourth largest in-country mobile operator in the world. The company is following China Mobile, China Unicom and American AT&T in terms of subscriber base. Bharti Airtel CEO and Joint Managing Director Manoj Kohli said, “We are happy to have achieved this milestone of being the largest integrated telco in the country, in customer terms. For us, the benchmark of real leadership is customer delight and would like to thank all our customers for placing their faith in us.” The company has also become one of fastest growing telecom company. Wireless Federation, 18th August 2008

* Dialog Telekom, Sri Lanka, posted it’s subscriber base growth which grew by 31% to reach 4.8 million subscribers at the end of June 2008. In the H1, consolidated group revenue rose by 13% year-on-year to LKR18.27 billion (USD179 million), with growth restricted by tariff reductions and other affordability strategies implemented in late 2007. EBITDA, in H1, represented a decline of 26% compared to the LKR7.24 billion. H1 net income was impacted even harder by the rising costs, falling 66% year-on-year to LKR1.64 billion. Wireless Federation, 18th August 2008

* Qtel, Qatar, gave it’s 3G subscribers a new surprise by launching an offer called Unlimited Live TV. This offers an unlimited access to mobile TV broadcasts for 24 hours for fee of QAR5 (USD1.37). The Mozaic 3G Live TV service now has four of Qatar’s most popular channels - Al Jazeera, Cartoon Network, Al Jazeera and Al Kaas. Wireless Federation, 18th August 2008

* Nasim Ashraf has stepped down as chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board following the resignation today of the country’s president Pervez Musharraf. Ashraf, who owed his position to the president, said he felt duty bound to stand aside in the circumstances. Musharraf appointed Ashraf in September 2006. He offered to step down when Pakistan were knocked out in the first round of the 2007 Cricket World Cup, but Musharraf refused to accept his resignation. Ashraf insisted that his own resignation would not affect the ICC Champions Trophy, the one-day international tournament which is due to take place in Pakistan next month. Sportcal, Sports City, 18th Aug 2008

* Manchester United has agreed a partnership with Saudi Telecom thought to be one of the most lucrative non-shirt sponsorship agreements in British football. The five-year deal with Saudi Arabia's largest telecommunications company was announced at Old Trafford on Sunday as the Barclays Premier League champion kicked off the defence of its title with a 1-1 draw against Newcastle United. The deal is reportedly worth US$18.6 million to United, whose main sponsor AIG pays $27.4 million per season for the right to have its logo emblazoned across the club’s shirt. Further details of the Saudi Telecom agreement are expected to be revealed at a news conference today. Sport Briefing, Sport Business, Sportcal, Sports City, News.WebIndia123, 18th Aug 2008

* The World Golf League (WGL) Million Dollar Shootout will be broadcast in 11 European countries this autumn thanks to an agreement between WGL Entertainment Holdings and European television network America Unleashed. Golf enthusiasts in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Denmark, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Montenegro will be able to enjoy the show, which features teams of club golfers playing for a prize of US$1 million with help from famous golf names including Fred Funk and Mark Calcavecchia, over a seven-week period. Sport Briefing, 18th Aug 2008

* The German Football League (DFL) has entered into a partnership with the German Sports Foundation (Sporthilfe) that is designed to use the Bundesliga’s expertise to benefit all sports in the country. The two parties have signed an initial agreement through to 2010, with the partnership being sealed at a press conference in Beijing. Professional football will now seek to support the elite athletes in German sport as part of a co-operation which will also place a heavy emphasis on the media sector. Sport Briefing, 18th Aug 2008

* Premier League’s Richard Scudamore remains convinced the worldwide interest in the English top flight has sufficient life in it for the much-discussed international dimension to be worth further investigation. Stunned at the antagonism towards the ‘39th game’ proposal for a round of fixtures to be played overseas, Scudamore is now looking at alternatives. One idea is to play a round of friendly matches during a winter break, although a disappointing crowd for the recent friendly between Manchester United and Portsmouth in Nigeria proves work still needs to be done on ticket pricing. Scudamore even feels an extra match overseas would generate increased competition within the League as a whole. “ Sport Briefing, 18th Aug 2008

* The International Cycling Union (UCI) has announced an initiative which should end its three-year conflict with the Tour de France organisers over its ProTour series. UCI told that development followed talks requested by the owners of the Tour de France, the Amaury Group, under the auspices of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the mediation of former ski champion Jean-Claude Killy. Under the new plan, the current road cycling calendar will be retained, with the UCI Pro Tour on the one hand and on the other the Historical Calendar, which regroups the monuments of cycling like the big Tours and the oldest one-day classics. Results in both calendars will award points in a new ranking system, which will be used from 2011 onwards to determine the 17 teams automatically qualifying to take part in the Tour de France. Sport Business, Sportcal, Sports City, 18th Aug 2008

* Chengdu in China and Cairo in Egypt will host the Modern Pentathlon World Championships in 2010 and 2011, respectively, the UIPM, the sport’s world governing body, has announced. The decision was taken at an extraordinary meeting of the UIPM executive board, held in Beijing today. Sportcal, 18th Aug 2008

* Private equity venture SEACOM said a fibre optic undersea cable linking east Africa to Europe and Asia would be launched in June 2009, in time for the 2010 soccer World Cup. It said in a statement it would start laying the $650-million cable, which is needed to provide high-speed Internet access and spur investment, in October. The 15 000 km cable will wind around the east of the continent between South Africa and Egypt, then on to Mumbai in India and Marseille in France. The group will start connecting sections of the cable in April 2009. The cable will provide 1.28 terabits per second of broadband capacity to enable high definition TV and provide inexpensive bandwidth. Sports City, 18th Aug 2008

* Spaniard Rafael Nadal dethroned Roger Federer from the top billing, ending his record four-and-half-year reign as the top tennis star. Nadal had to wait for three consecutive years on the second pedestal to unseat the Swiss champion. Nadal had a spectacular season this year, winning the French Open followed by Wimbledon and then Sunday an Olympic gold medal. Federer, on the other hand, is yet to win any major title. News.WebIndia123, 18th August 2008

* Fantasy football will cost U.S. employers $9.2 billion in lost work time this season, a private research group said. Researchers Challenger, Gray & Christmas said Monday the 17-week National Football League schedule will subtract 1.19 hours of productivity per week from about 17 million Americans who participate. Most employers understand that not every minute of the day is dedicated to work. In fact, in today's 24-7 global economy, it is likely that work bleeds into our personal lives, said Chief Executive Officer John Challenger. Clearly, 17 million workers sacked is unlikely, but Challenger advocated for leaving well enough alone. Managers should only crack down on those whose work is clearly suffering from the added distraction. An across-the-board ban on all fantasy football or sports Web sites could backfire in the form of reduced morale and loyalty, he said. News.WebIndia123, 18th August 2008