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Beijing Regulations on Ambush Advertising During the Olympic Games

By Michael Schnurr & Edward Lehman

LEHMAN, LEE & XU

With the 2008 Olympic Games only weeks away, Beijing is making last minute preparations before becoming the center of the world’s focus.  One major issue particularly relevant to the Beijing Games is ambush advertising.  Ambush advertising, broadly defined, is "the unauthorized association of a business or organization with the marketing of a particular event - gaining benefit for the marketing right or licensing fee applicable in order to be associated with an event, such as a sporting event." ¹

Ambush marketing has been a predominant issue during the Olympic Games in the past.  At the 1996 Atlanta Games, Nike, a non-sponsor, placed advertisements near stadiums and constructed a “Nike village” directly outside of the Olympic Village.  At the 1994 Lillehammer Games, American Express ran an ad in response to Visa’s “Official sponsor of the Olympic Games” add stating that you didn’t need a ‘visa’ to go to Norway.

 

This summer’s games are turning out to be no different than the past.  Nike has concluded clothing and apparel deals with high-profile Chinese athletes such as 2004 Olympic gold medalist Liu Xiang, and PepsiCo has replaced their traditional blue cans with a red one (similar to that of official sponsor Coca-cola) decorated with pictures of fans cheering on team China.  Nike has acknowledged that the requirement for all athletes to wear apparel made by Adidas, an official Olympic sponsor, during podium ceremonies is a non-issue and that images of the athletes competing is sufficient promotion of their product. 

China’s history of lenient intellectual property rights enforcement has left many questioning how China plans to handle the threat of ambush advertising during the Games.  Multinational corporations purchasing advertising time and sponsoring athletes is one issue, but lack of IP protection also provides smaller Chinese enterprises with the opportunity to associate their name with the Games.  Placing Olympic symbols next to their company name can generate a lot of positive publicity for smaller enterprises.

The prevention of ambush advertising is therefore a top priority for the Chinese Government and the Beijing Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games (BOCOG).  Understanding the problem in its early stages, in 2002, the State Council adopted the Regulations on the Protection of Olympic Symbols.  Article one of the regulation describes the purpose of the law as “strengthening the protection of Olympic symbols, safeguarding the lawful rights and interests of the right holders of Olympic symbols and maintaining the dignity of the Olympic movement.”  The widespread use of Olympic symbols on clothing and accessories in the years following the implementation of this law however, is evidence of rampant non-compliance along with non-enforcement.

A series of recent developments should provide official sponsors with justification of their investment.  With only weeks to the opening ceremony, the deputy director of the marketing department of the BOCOG, Chen Feng has issued statements in an attempt to curb ambush advertising.  Mr. Chen has stated that on July 11, all prominent advertising space in Beijing, including at the airport and on subway lines, will be controlled, giving official sponsors priority.  Furthermore, Mr. Chen has issued a warning that companies will be monitored for illegal advertising and serious action will be taken against violators.  In an effort to curb ambush advertising by fans, Mr. Chen stated that if a group of spectators is all wearing similar clothing it will be viewed as suspicious and the spectators will be spoken with and asked to stop. 

As the next month unfolds, it will be interesting to see whether Mr. Chen’s pronouncements will have an effect on advertising during the Games.  The Chinese concern for saving face and proving to the world that it is capable of successfully hosting the Olympic Games leads one to believe that a concentrated effort will be made to take whatever measures necessary to protect the rights of official sponsors of the Beijing Olympic Games.  When the Games close on August 24th, the success of the anti-ambush marketing campaign will ultimately be measured by who the public perceived the Games’ official sponsors to be.

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¹ (Frank Zimbo, "Ambush Marketing", (1996) 12(6) Australian New Zealand Trade Practices Law Bulletin 93)

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