“YOU DON’T HAVE TO be a genius to know that consumers’ expectations are different than what they once were,” understates the Olympic Broadcast Consortium’s Alon Marcovici while discussing the digital plans he and his team have for the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Virtually everything is on the table. With a vow that every second of the Games be made available to fans, the CTV-Rogers broadcast consortium will make use of all its digital weapons – from the web (streamed live or recorded video, apps, games, user generated content, interactivity and social media) to mobile and VOD says the vice-president of digital media and research.
Even if you’re just a passing Olympic fan, you’ll easily be able to find satisfaction nearly wherever you turn because keep in mind, among the two consortium partners there are dozens of radio stations, three conventional TV networks, three sports channels, a number of specialty channels and a national newspaper – each with their own web presences and each outlet will cover the Olympics in their own way.
What Marcovici and his team are building is the way to pull all of that – and more- together, on line.
And if you’re so into it that you need to watch the Japan-China early round curling action, you’ll be able to track that down, too on the primary Olympic site. (For a taste of what’s to come, go to www.ctvolympics.ca.
The primary site, says Marcovici, identifies itself three ways – as a news and information portal (the events, who won and when), a video streaming site (to see how and maybe why) and a place for social interaction (“Dude, did u c that! Check this link!”).
And the ways to watch the action won’t just be the TV coverage re-canned for the web. Viewers will be able (in English and French) to see any event they like and even choose between an audio with commentators, or one with just the event audio.
It won’t just be CTV and Rogers producers pulling the content together either. User-generated content including photos and videos, inside or outside the venues, will be encouraged. “One of the philosophies that we took to the (International Olympic Committee) – and they absolutely loved it – is we fundamentally are embracing both user-generated content and the social network. It is a point of difference between us and other broadcasters, but it’s something the IOC recognizes they want and need to do because they want us to embrace youth… (and) that means giving them choice. It means enabling them to contribute to the conversation, participate in the content creation, not just be, passive listeners or readers of it,” explains Marcovici.
However, that choice when it comes to mobile is going to be a little restricted as the consortium has signed a yet-to-be-announced deal with a wireless company for exclusive mobile feeds of Olympic content. Marcovici wouldn’t say which company it is yet but it’s worth noting that one company (Bell) owns a piece of CTVglobemedia and another of the consortium’s partners (Rogers) is also the largest wireless company in the country.
The consortium, while wanting to make sure its main site is the clearing house for all things 2010 Winter Olympics, is still looking to sign other deals as well to bring more interactivity, too. “We’re in conversations with Facebook Connect about how to integrate it into our web site and have an ongoing dialogue during the games, in advance of the games, post-games – in much the same way that the inauguration did that in the States,” he says. “So you can watch the game from your couch, and watch it online, or watch it on TV from your couch and the additive component is to participate in it with friends and trash talk, etc.”
Other innovative aspects of the site will be the ability to, for example, call up video online with complete PVR functionality and even directions on where to find the turning points in hockey games (goals, penalties) without having to sit through the whole thing.
Users will also be able to set reminders for certain events and be messaged or e-mailed or RSS’d, or tweeted when their favourite skier is about to make their run.
“We really are focused quite dramatically on the integration of data and video and figuring out what else we can add to it,” says Marcovici.
“We’ve got the UGC component added to the video. We’ve got the real time results added to the video. We’ve got actual logging information added to it so you know with deep linking into the video you’ll be able to deliver an experience to your friends too. Rather than saying, ‘hey check out this great hit’ and send somebody a link that takes them to the beginning of the stream of a game, you’re sending someone deep into the game.
“And if you extend that into where you’re picking out your five best moments of that game, you’re effectively programming someone else’s channel. And now Greg O’Brien can produce for all of his faithful friends, all of his peers, he can produce ‘my own personal daily highlight reel’ that gets sent to people.”
Talk about user/viewer engagement.
And it’s that engagement which advertisers say they want to see. Of course, the big (analog) dollars are still being spent on the broadcast portion of Olympics coverage because that is still where most people will take in their main Olympics experience, but Marcovici is betting the 2010 Games will be a game-changer on the digital side, which still just earns dimes in comparison.
“There still is a disparity, and that comes right from a media misalignment in general,” he said. “I think these games will be a watershed moment to somewhat realign that.
“A lot of sponsors are saying fundamentally I don’t have much money, but I plan to spend it all on digital. Or, I have a lot of money, but I need digital to prop up some of the value of the television. For most, we are selling integrated.”
“The media buying agency, the agency world itself, has to grasp the digital opportunity… Help me make their experience better, so to speak. And that’s a key change in people’s mindsets as well. I think in many ways, the advertising community needs to recognize that ultimately it’s about creative,” adds Marcovici.
“But creative has to be placed in the right spot. And online there’s a lot more flexibility than there might be elsewhere. So I’d say we’re having great success on it. I’d say that the balance we’ll have to play is how do we use one platform to push another. How do we work them together?”
