Olympics bosses get nasty over Flickr pix
p2pnet news view Freedom | P2P:- Olympic blogging is GOOD! But it should be “dignified”.
And that’s official.
Blogging news is, however, verboten. And that’s official too.
Rule 49 of the Olympic Charter states that, “Only those persons accredited as media may act as journalists, reporters or in any other media capacity.”
That was what p2pnet posted in May.
Now, “Amateur photographers in the spectator stands at the Olympics should look over their shoulders before peering through the lens because a powerful organization will be sure to watch what they do with those snapshots,” says the Toronto Star.
The International Olympic Committee sent a cease-and-desist letter to Richard Giles, 38, after discovering his images from his three-week solo trip to China for the 2008 Beijing Games on the Flickr, it says.
It’s the first time the IOC, which on its website boasts it’s the “supreme authority of the Olympic Movement,” has moved to protect its image on a ’social media’ site, adds the story.
Observes Jordan on Now Public »»»
The letter linked below is a bit startling, mainly because Howard M. Strupp, the IOC’s Director of Legal Affairs seems a bit confused about what Flickr is: a non-professional photo storage site. A shoebox, in other words.
The letter is a legal threat against Giles for hosting images of the Olympics on his Flickrstream in what the IOC feels is a violation of the terms and conditions of his ticket. You can read a large size version of the BS letter that the IOC sent to Giles here. Source: thomashawk.com
The legal issues raised by the C&D are mixed on a couple of fronts. The IOC has zero standing in demanding that Richard remove photographs outside of Olympic venues. It would also have a very slim to zero claim over the use of the term Olympic in Richard describing pictures he has taken, for example a description on this shot stating “Beijing Olympics Water Cube” is a factual description of the shot, as opposed to any effort to hijack the Olympic trade mark. Source: inquisitr.com
I hope that the IOC is aware that it’s about to show up in one of the most media-savvy towns in the world, and that trying to stop private citizens from posting “unauthorized” photos will be nothing short of a fool’s errand. This sort of hostility towards Olympic fans is both wasteful and pointless. Does the IOC not understand why people go to the Olympic Games? (Hint: to come home with once-in-a-lifetime memories. This includes things like… photos) If the IOC has trouble understanding what the Internet does, they can probably find someone to ask. My own consulting rate is quite reasonable.
“By the way, Richard … great photo!” – says Jordan.
Stay tuned. 
(Cheers, RW)
p2pnet – Olympic blogs OK for Vancouver, May 15, 2009
Toronto Star – Olympics warns man to remove photos from website, October 9, 2009
Now Public – IOC Tries to Take Down Olympic Photos on Flickr, October 7, 2009
Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. It’s really easy!
Subscribe to p2pnet.net | | rss feed: http://p2pnet.net/p2p.rss | | Mobile – http://p2pnet.net/index-wml.php
Net access blocked by government restrictions? Use Psiphon from the Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto. Go here for details.
October 9th, 2009 at 10:15 am
The IOC is disgusting. Those people literally think that they have the (deity here)-given right to tell everyone else on the planet what they’re going to do.
October 9th, 2009 at 10:34 am
IOC: Go Home! Take your greediness with you! We do NOT need your “security” and control.
Someone takes a photo of an athlete and you claim it is a violation of their ticket? And if that someone is NOT viewing the games but photographing the scenery, no ticket and hence no rules, what then? Oh right, they MUST be a terrorist and CSIS/VPD/RCMP will gladly go after them, tasers blasting.
I think Vancouver should have told the IOC to go elsewhere, but as usual few chose to have their voices heard.
October 9th, 2009 at 11:15 am
We don’t need Olympics in Canada, because they do not share Canadian values.
Olympics and IOC is all about corruption, greed, control and copyrasty.
October 9th, 2009 at 12:25 pm
IOC can go to hell.
The Olympics are supposed to be for the World to enjoy not just the IOC’s over paid asses
October 9th, 2009 at 12:34 pm
“Oh right, they MUST be a terrorist and CSIS/VPD/RCMP will gladly go after them, tasers blasting.”
Or, you know, they’ll harass your ex-wife of 15 years because you DARED to speak out against the games, you fucking heathen! Or maybe they’ll shut down a library or a public square or two.
I honestly hope something goes catastrophically wrong… like a green winter. Anything to ruin that games that won’t harm anyone innocent.
October 11th, 2009 at 3:50 am
For an in-depth analysis and what subsequently happened regarding the photo’s et. al You might like to read the actual photographers recent blog post regarding the original OIC letter, his contact with the EFA and EFF, further emails he sent to the OIC and the OIC’s very nice and non-adversary letter (unlike the first one) stating their reasons and concerns.
http://richardgiles.com/2009/10/09/the-olympics-and-creative-commons-photographs/
His second last paragraph is probably the best analysis of this whole debacle
“Gone are the days when organisations can tackle customers with an impersonal attitude. We’re all a lot more connected today, and all a lot more savvy about the choices that we have. I think we all expect to be treated as equals, with a lot of respect. We also know that there are millions of others that now expect the same, and we’re all willing to stick up for each other. As Clay Shirky says: Here Comes Everybody..”
Cheers