Culture, Media and Sport CommitteeLetter from the British Olympic Association to Chairman of the Committee

We are of course very happy to share further information on the Scheme which we run in partnership with the Department of Culture, Media and Sport and UK Trade and Investment. We are in fact also meeting with Matthew Griffiths, Chief Executive Officer of Plasa in the next week and hope this will be a useful forum to discuss the concerns of his industry as well as explain the opportunities for London 2012 suppliers in more detail.

As the organisation charged with administering the Scheme, we at the British Olympic Association (BOA) are committed to ensuring as many businesses as possible can showcase the important role they played in the success of the London 2012 Games.

In recognition of this, we have worked intensively with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to identify the maximum scope for suppliers to be able to promote the goods and services they provided to the Games. This resulted in the creation of the Scheme which as you know was launched in January this year.

The Scheme is a first for the Olympics. The No Marketing Rights restrictions which London 2012 suppliers (and indeed previous Olympic suppliers) are contractually bound by in their supply agreements have never previously been relaxed after a Games. The Scheme will provide the vast majority of suppliers with ways in which to leverage the important role they played in the success of the London 2012 Games.

All companies who supplied LOCOG, the ODA or one of their subcontractors and who were subject to No Marketing Rights are eligible to apply to the Scheme and to date over 670 London 2012 suppliers have benefited from the Scheme. This represents over 84% of the applications processed to date.

In developing the Scheme we, together with the IOC, had to strike a balance between supporting the interests of London 2012 suppliers and our responsibility to ensure we do not infringe upon the rights of worldwide Olympic sponsors, whose long term support is essential to the future of the Olympic movement. In doing so it was necessary for certain categories of business to be excluded from the Scheme. We have worked with the IOC to keep the exclusions to a minimum and regularly review the categories in order to ensure as many businesses as possible can benefit from the Scheme. For your information, a list of the excluded categories can be found on the Scheme website at www.srs2012.com/faq and we encourage all suppliers who think they may fall within an exclusion to seek further guidance from us.

For those suppliers who do fall within one of the excluded categories, there are still ways in which they can use their experiences at the London 2012 Games to win new business and demonstrate their capabilities. All companies who supplied London 2012 can continue to factually refer to their work on the Games and indeed, have never been prohibited from doing so. Suppliers can, for example, make reference to their London 2012 work in client lists and in pitch and tender documents. Enclosed with this letter is a copy of the guidance we issue to those suppliers who fall within an excluded category. This guidance has been designed to help these suppliers maximise their involvement in the Games whilst still ensuring they do not fall afoul of the contractual conditions they signed up to in their supply agreements.

We understand that the fact that some exclusions exist is a frustration for some suppliers, but given the rights of the worldwide Olympic sponsors and their vital role in ensuring the viability of the Games, some limitations on the Scheme are inevitable.

I hope it is clear from this letter that we and the IOC have tried to be as flexible as possible in order to support as many suppliers as possible. If we can provide any further information or guidance on the Scheme to you or other members of the Committee please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Thank you again for your interest in the Scheme and for bringing the concerns of the Committee to our attention.

14 June 2013

APPENDIX

LONDON 2012 NO MARKETING RIGHTS—GUIDANCE FOR SUPPLIERS EXCLUDED FROM THE SUPPLIER RECOGNITION SCHEME

This document provides guidance for suppliers who are excluded from the Supplier Recognition Scheme. In particular it provides information on how they are permitted to reference the important role they played in the delivery of the Games.

What are the No Marketing Rights?

These are the legal restrictions placed on LOCOG and ODA suppliers as well as their subcontractors. These London 2012 suppliers signed supply agreements which included No Marketing Rights clauses. These prevented them from proactively talking about or marketing their involvement in the Games.

The restrictions were required to preserve the funding received from Olympic sponsors. Funding which was required to deliver a high quality Games in London and which, through worldwide Olympic sponsors, continues to be vitally important in ensuring the future viability of the Games.

Who do the No Marketing Rights apply to?

No Marketing Rights continue to apply to suppliers who worked on the London 2012 Games and who were subject to No Marketing Rights clauses in their supply agreements.

For how long will No Marketing Rights apply?

The No Marketing Rights are surviving contractual conditions and apply indefinitely. Suppliers however can apply to the British Olympic Association for a Supplier Recognition Scheme licence. If successful, the licence relaxes the restrictions and enables the supplier to talk about their involvement in business to business communications including promoting their work on their website, at trade shows and in pitches and tender documents when competing for international contracts.

If a supplier is not eligible for a licence, eg they fall within a category of business excluded from the Scheme, the No Marketing Rights continue to apply indefinitely. These suppliers can however continue to make simple, factual statements about their work on the Games.

My company is excluded from the Supplier Recognition Scheme. What is my company permitted to do under the continuing No Marketing Rights?

We recognise that every supplier played an important role in the Games. We also recognise how important it is for suppliers to be able to demonstrate the work they carried out and share their experiences when bidding for and working on future projects.

Given this, there are a number of circumstances in which suppliers can continue to factually refer to their work on the Games. Highlighted below are examples of the types of activity that are permitted. Suppliers are encouraged to contact the British Olympic Association for further guidance.

Activity	What is permitted
Client lists	The name of the client (eg LOCOG, ODA) plus a short description (20 words) may be included as long as:
	—	other clients are included (minimum 5)
	—	there is no special emphasis
Pitch/tender documents	An accurate factual statement about the supplier’s involvement in the Games may be used in a pitch document or presentation as long as:
	—	the document is not made available beyond the group to whom the pitch is submitted
	—	other examples of work are provided
Verbal communications	Suppliers may talk about the work they undertook in an informal business context as long as this is not marketing activity eg talking to a large group of potential clients
Responding to media enquiries	Suppliers may not instigate media enquiries or issue press releases about their work on the Games but when contacted by media may respond with a brief factual description of their work.
Internal communications	Internal communications to staff are permitted as long as the announcements are factual and proportionate.
Academic conferences	Suppliers may speak about their work in connection with the Games in an appropriate non-Games specific, educational context including at academic conferences and at general business conferences as long as:
	—	other clients are included (minimum 5)
	—	there is no special emphasis
	Academic articles may be permitted and approval should be sought from the British Olympic Association
Awards	Requests to submit entries for awards should be submitted to the British Olympic Association. The British Olympic Association will consider each request on a case by case basis.

What wording is permitted in factual statements?

Suppliers should avoid creating an association with the Olympic and Paralympic Games and are asked to refer to all their work within the context of the London 2012 Games.

Tom Smith Autos supplied repair services to the London 2012 Games

XTom Smith Autos supplied repair services to the Olympics

What is not permitted under the No Marketing Rights?

Suppliers who have not been granted a Supplier Recognition Scheme licence and are still bound by No Marketing Rights should avoid any form of marketing or promotional activity that includes reference to their work on the London 2012 Games. In particular suppliers should not use any Games logos, fonts or imagery (including photographs) and should not run any advertising or PR campaigns which promote their work in connection with the Games.

For Further Information

Requests and enquiries should be directed to brandprotection@teamgb.com