How Yahoo! Plans to Cover London Olympic Games
Digital media company Yahoo! will cover the London Summer Games, providing social, interactive, and personal experiences to consumers, across every screen.
Anchored with Yahoo! Sports, Yahoo!’s “Beyond Gold” coverage will provide its global users, in dozens of languages and regions, with original video programs, breaking news, photos, expert analysis from gold medal Olympians and Yahoo! Sports writers, unique editorial series, fantasy games and engaging second screen experiences.
“Yahoo! has been the No. 1 online destination for Olympics coverage since 2006, proving to be the place for users to gather and follow the biggest events,” said Ken Fuchs, VP of Global Media for Yahoo! & head of Yahoo! Sports, Men’s and Games. “London 2012 will be a showcase for 24/7 reporting, across all screens, and Yahoo! is investing to deliver powerful experiences for our users and advertisers.”
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It’s said that the James Bond movie star Daniel Craig will open the 2012 Olympic Games to be held in London. Reportedly, he has been personally invited by Queen Elizabeth to open the games in a totally dramatic style to make the event a memorable one for people across the world. (Read: ‘James Bond’ on a New Mission for Olympic Games)
Meanwhile, IBM has announced the completion of a digital transformation project with the All England Lawn Tennis Club. By visiting the new www.wimbledon.com from a variety of devices including the iPhone, iPad, Android and other tablets, fans can share information, interact with and connect to The Championships as if they were actually there seeing the plays in real-time. (Read: How IBM Helps Fans Connect to Wimbledon Games)
Yahoo!’s coverage of the London Summer Games will bring the events to life across multiple screens, using different digital platforms and design formats:
The Yahoo! Hub: Anchored in Yahoo! Sports, the Yahoo! Hub dedicated to the coverage of the Games is available and optimized for PC, mobile and tablet browsers. “London Pick’em,” a prediction-style game, will allow fans to challenge their friends and compete against fellow Yahoo! users from 27 countries around the world. The Flickr Group “Yahoo!’s Coverage of London 2012” will feature original photos submitted by Flickr members depicting the worldwide excitement of the Summer Games at viewing parties and other scenes surrounding the events.
IntoNow from Yahoo!: A second screen TV experience gives fans the ability to enjoy up to the minute synchronized content featuring medal counts, images from the games, schedules and athlete bios automatically synchronized with the Summer Games on the TV along with additional social experiences, including Twitter content from personalities at the games, and trivia.
Sportacular from Yahoo!: A special tab on this sports app offers personalized access to teams, players, and leagues, allowing fans to get updates, stats and news on specific events and medal counts on the go.
Connected TV: Integrated into the Yahoo! Sports TV app, Beyond Gold for Yahoo! Connected TV is an on-screen experience for people watching the Summer Games and offers news, scores, medal counts, photos and videos right on the TV screen.
Search Direct Displays: Leveraging Yahoo! Sports editorial and real-time search data, Yahoo! Search will offer customized multi-screen direct displays across APAC, EMEA and North America, including medal counts, breakout athletes and popular teams.
Yahoo!, which is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, made this announcement Wednesday, July 18.