via www.theaustralian.com.au: The IOC has issued social media, blogging and internet guidelines for Olympians, with a warning that those who break the rules risk being thrown out of the Games.
GMM: According to "The Australian" newspaper, the International Olympic Committee will be encouraging athletes to tweet, blog and post updates to Facebook...with a few restrictions.
- no commercial or advertising use, meaning athletes cannot promote their personal sponsors which could be seen/defined as ambush competitors or guerilla marketers. (The IOC must protect their official Olympic Partners as they have invested a great deal of money in the Games.)
- athletes may not report on competitions (which I believe is another protection for the IOC's broadcasting partners and accredited media reporting on the Games).
- athletes may not report info that's "private in nature" about other competitors or accredited persons.
- athletes must not post vulgar or obscene content.
- athletes must not post any audio or video from within the Olympic venues, however, they can post photos of themselves.
- there are also restrictions on posts using the Olympic rings.
The Australian reports that the IOC warns athletes to use social media responsibly and at their own risk.
The IOC's rules of social media engagement may sound a little strict, but they are, actually, more relaxed than in the past and a positive step in the right direction... Let the 2012 Social Media Olympics begin!!!
Comments