IOC Awards Broadcast Rights in Japan for Olympics

TOKYO, April 30: The
International Olympic Committee (IOC) has granted the broadcast rights in Japan
for the Vancouver 2010 and London 2012 Olympic Games to the Japan Consortium,
an association of NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation) and NAB (the National
Association of Commercial Broadcasters in Japan).

The IOC selected the Japan
Consortium on its capacity to reach the broadest possible audience on a variety
of broadcast platforms, including free-to-air television, subscription
television and digital media (Internet and mobile phone), and “its commitment
to promoting the Olympic Games and the values of the Olympic Movement.” The
agreement also includes the possibility of sublicensing broadcast rights to
specific platforms.

IOC’s president, Jacques
Rogge, said: “We are delighted to continue our partnership with the Japan
Consortium, with which we have been working for many years. Its support has not
only enabled us to provide Japanese viewers with increased coverage of the
Olympic Games, but also promoted Olympic sports and Olympic values outside
Games time.”

Richard Carrión, an
executive board member on the IOC who led the negotiations, said: “The Olympic
Games are very popular in Japan, and in a major part this is down to the
excellent work over many years of our broadcast partners there. The IOC looks
forward to continuing its association with the Japan Consortium in order to
attract new Olympic fans to the Olympic Games and the Olympic values, through
excellent quality broadcast production across all media platforms.”

NHK’s president, Shigeo
Fukuchi, said: “As a public broadcaster, NHK has been committed to conveying
the Olympic values on its terrestrial and satellite channels. NHK will continue
to utilize its latest broadcast technology, and together with NAB shall strive
to deliver the highest quality broadcast for our audiences to enjoy the Olympic
Games.”

Michisada Hirose, the
president of NAB, added, “NAB, together with our Japan Consortium partner NHK,
is confident that it will be able to deliver to the Japanese viewers the
excitement and the liveliest pictures of the Olympic Games in the digital
broadcast format. In the hope of providing the very best of the sports to the
Japanese audience, NAB very much looks forward to a continued constructive
relationship with the IOC.”

—By Irene Lew