The Social Olympics

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This year’s Summer Olympics are lovingly being dubbed the “Socialympics.” With the advances in technology and the vast reach of social media, the games will be broadcast in a whole new light and along with these changes come a few friendly regulations.

The International Olympics Committee (IOC) has set a few guidelines for the social media savvy crowd. These rules apply to Facebook and Twitter so if you’re watching, here are a few things to note:

-If you are a brand, you cannot associate yourself with the Olympics

-You must comply with the Olympic Association Right (OAR) and London Olympic Association Right (LOAR)

-You must only provide the facts and avoid violating any restrictions

-Avoid any marketing campaigns that involve the Olympics

These restrictions are a tad strict and as a spectator or a social media manager, your best bet is to share what the news outlets are already sharing to avoid any potential lawsuits. To stay current, follow the official Olympics site and the site dedicated to just the London games. If you’re looking to follow via social media, check out the Olympics Facebook page, Twitter, Google+ page, YouTube channel, Flickr page, and their recent partnership with Shazaam. They are seriously all over the web. You can’t miss the coverage if you’re looking to share some awesome highlights to your followers on your own various channels.

In addition to catching all the highlights via the web and the various social media channels, NBC has launched two apps for your smart phone that will allow you to catch all the action live as it happens, look up athlete bios, and access any other content that may be relevant to the games as they air. The apps will work with your mobile phone and your iPad. NBC has stated that this will be the first time all 3,500 hours worth of Olympic coverage will be available via smart phone and other tablets. NBC is also hoping to shatter some Twitter records. This is also the first time it will be covered so vastly via social media.

Are you planning to watch the games? What are your favorite events and athletes? And how will you be watching online? Let us know in the comments below.

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