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160-million households worldwide watched Ja’s National Trials
BY PAUL A REID Observer Writer reidp@jamaicaobserver.com
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
THE Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA)/Supreme Ventures National Senior Trials that concluded on Sunday were seen in more than 160-million households worldwide over the four days.
The trials, which were used to help select Jamaican teams to three international events later this year — the 13th IAAF World Championships in Daegu, South Korea in late August, the Central American and Caribbean Senior Championships to be held in Puerto Rico in July, and the Pan-American Games to be held in Mexico later in the year — were also seen via Pay-Per-View in over 65 counties.
Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) public relations officer Dennis Gordon (left) speaking at yesterday’s Observer Monday Exchange while his colleagues, Alfred Francis (centre), JAAA executive member and Ludlow Watts, JAAA treasurer, listen. (Photo: Marlon Reid)
The figures were presented by Dennis Gordon, the public relations officer for the JAAA, at yesterday’s Observer Monday Exchange held at the newspaper’s headquarters in Kingston.
The data highlighted the intense worldwide interest in Jamaican track and field that has been growing since the island’s athletes dominated the sprint events at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games in which Usain Bolt shattered both the 100m and 200m records and contributed to Jamaica’s 4x100m team breaking the record in that event and winning gold.
Jamaica ended the games with a record six gold, three silver and two bronze medals. The following year, at the IAAF World Championships in Berlin, Germany, Jamaican athletes continued their medals plunder taking a record seven gold, four silver and two bronze, with Bolt lowering his own records in both individual sprints.
Yesterday, Gordon said the Pay-Per-View streaming of the national trials was in addition to the live free-to-air television broadcast of the event here in Jamaica, while the trials had subscribers from countries in the Caribbean and as far away as Greece, Belgium, Poland, Macedonia, Czech Republic, the United Arab Emirates, Brazil and Portugal.
Additionally, he said requests for media accreditation came from seven overseas television stations and four newspapers plus Reuters news agency.
The over season requests, he said, came from Sweden, France, Germany, England, Japan and Korea.
Gordon said the JAAA had established its own mobile television and Internet streaming since last year as it sought to find “innovative ways to earn funds and see how best to offset the deficit” of running the trials.
He said the JAAA had “looked at the technology, recognising we have a product that is of international level”.
The final numbers, Gordon said, were still being tabulated “but this is where we are repositioning the JAAA, to maximise its benefits in terms of additional revenue… this is one of our major thrusts going forward”.
Having started the mobile television and Internet streaming last year, Gordon said it was still a work in progress and the JAAA was “working incrementally to get all the kinks out”. but faced serious obstacles such as “Internet pirates who put up (clips of races) on YouTube”.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/...#ixzz1QZa6FN8q
BY PAUL A REID Observer Writer reidp@jamaicaobserver.com
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
THE Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA)/Supreme Ventures National Senior Trials that concluded on Sunday were seen in more than 160-million households worldwide over the four days.
The trials, which were used to help select Jamaican teams to three international events later this year — the 13th IAAF World Championships in Daegu, South Korea in late August, the Central American and Caribbean Senior Championships to be held in Puerto Rico in July, and the Pan-American Games to be held in Mexico later in the year — were also seen via Pay-Per-View in over 65 counties.
Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) public relations officer Dennis Gordon (left) speaking at yesterday’s Observer Monday Exchange while his colleagues, Alfred Francis (centre), JAAA executive member and Ludlow Watts, JAAA treasurer, listen. (Photo: Marlon Reid)
The figures were presented by Dennis Gordon, the public relations officer for the JAAA, at yesterday’s Observer Monday Exchange held at the newspaper’s headquarters in Kingston.
The data highlighted the intense worldwide interest in Jamaican track and field that has been growing since the island’s athletes dominated the sprint events at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games in which Usain Bolt shattered both the 100m and 200m records and contributed to Jamaica’s 4x100m team breaking the record in that event and winning gold.
Jamaica ended the games with a record six gold, three silver and two bronze medals. The following year, at the IAAF World Championships in Berlin, Germany, Jamaican athletes continued their medals plunder taking a record seven gold, four silver and two bronze, with Bolt lowering his own records in both individual sprints.
Yesterday, Gordon said the Pay-Per-View streaming of the national trials was in addition to the live free-to-air television broadcast of the event here in Jamaica, while the trials had subscribers from countries in the Caribbean and as far away as Greece, Belgium, Poland, Macedonia, Czech Republic, the United Arab Emirates, Brazil and Portugal.
Additionally, he said requests for media accreditation came from seven overseas television stations and four newspapers plus Reuters news agency.
The over season requests, he said, came from Sweden, France, Germany, England, Japan and Korea.
Gordon said the JAAA had established its own mobile television and Internet streaming since last year as it sought to find “innovative ways to earn funds and see how best to offset the deficit” of running the trials.
He said the JAAA had “looked at the technology, recognising we have a product that is of international level”.
The final numbers, Gordon said, were still being tabulated “but this is where we are repositioning the JAAA, to maximise its benefits in terms of additional revenue… this is one of our major thrusts going forward”.
Having started the mobile television and Internet streaming last year, Gordon said it was still a work in progress and the JAAA was “working incrementally to get all the kinks out”. but faced serious obstacles such as “Internet pirates who put up (clips of races) on YouTube”.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/...#ixzz1QZa6FN8q
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