BOCOG to strengthen anti-ambush marketing efforts

"BOCOG has attached great importance to the fight against ambush marketing because we promised to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to do so and because it is an important way to ensure successful Olympics in 2008," said Chen Feng, vice-director of BOCOG Marketing Department.

"If we don't prevent and fight ambush marketing, more and more interest-driven enterprises will join the ranks of ambush marketing companies, which will reduce the value of the Olympic brands and dampen the sponsors' enthusiasm. The Olympic Movement will lose its financial support and this may imperil the 2008 Olympic Games," he told a press conference at the Beijing Olympic Media Center on Wednesday.

He mentioned several measures to fight against infringements .First, he said, BOCOG is upholding the exclusivity principle when dealing with and selecting the sponsor enterprises to avoid competition between enterprises of the same category.

Second, Chen said, BOCOG is conducting marketing together with the Chinese Olympic Committee, the Hong Kong Olympic Committee and the Chinese Paralympic Committee, so that competing enterprises are barred from taking part in different Olympic or Paralympic marketing programs.

Third, non-sponsor enterprises are not allowed to conduct publicity with overt Olympic content.

Fourth, he said, Olympic-related publicity is also banned for donors, licensed enterprises, sport equipment suppliers and Olympic competition venue owners.

Furthermore, Chen said, during the Olympic Games, the athletes will not be allowed to make any publicity for non-Olympic sponsors, as the image of the athletes is closely linked to the Games.

The official noted that the fight against ambush marketing should involve many participants, including different levels of government, social organizations, news media, co-host cities, and even spectators. "If ordinary citizens refrain from buying fake Olympic products and report infringement cases, they will be making a sterling contribution to the Olympics and to the protection of Olympic intellectual property rights," Chen said.