郭大衛(wèi)

關(guān)于倫敦奧運(yùn)，人們除了從電視、廣播、報(bào)紙等傳統(tǒng)媒體上得到消息外，還可以在自己的手機(jī)、移動(dòng)電視、平板電腦上目睹種種賽場內(nèi)外的情況。因此,有人說，今年是奧運(yùn)網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播元年。

無線互聯(lián)網(wǎng)

也許很多人會(huì)覺得網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播怎么是從今年才開始呢？中國觀眾不是早在2008年就在通過互聯(lián)網(wǎng)觀看北京奧運(yùn)的各項(xiàng)比賽了嗎？BBC（英國廣播公司)不是在2004年雅典奧運(yùn)上就提供了1000小時(shí)的直播節(jié)目嗎？但是，當(dāng)時(shí)尚未通過互聯(lián)網(wǎng)用無線接入的方式向手機(jī)、移動(dòng)電視和平板電腦直播任何節(jié)目，人們要看節(jié)目，必須通過電視同有線寬帶連接到桌面電腦。在那個(gè)時(shí)代，“隨時(shí)隨地”這個(gè)詞，還不能應(yīng)用在收看奧運(yùn)比賽這件事情上。

無線網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播奧運(yùn)的出現(xiàn)是歷史必然：過去幾年中，互聯(lián)網(wǎng)的普及，視頻網(wǎng)站、高速無線寬帶的涌現(xiàn)，平板電腦、手提電腦，移動(dòng)電視和手機(jī)的跟進(jìn)，為網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播體育比賽節(jié)目提供了堅(jiān)實(shí)的基礎(chǔ)。同時(shí)，24小時(shí)在線與實(shí)時(shí)評論，能使人們用隨身攜帶的移動(dòng)設(shè)備隨時(shí)收看。Facebook有大約9億用戶，Twitter有1億多用戶，新浪微博有3億多用戶。這些用戶中相當(dāng)一部分使用移動(dòng)終端登錄。如此規(guī)模的移動(dòng)設(shè)備收視人群在2008年尚不存在。據(jù)預(yù)測，約有20億人將通過網(wǎng)絡(luò)觀看倫敦賽事，逼近北京奧運(yùn)47億電視觀眾的一半。

為了搞好網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播，NBC（美國全國廣播公司)專門建立了直播網(wǎng)站，推出收看直播詳細(xì)指南，幫助網(wǎng)友解決技術(shù)問題，了解直播內(nèi)容和時(shí)間，做好收看準(zhǔn)備。BBC推出了為奧運(yùn)網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播定制的播放器軟件，還將首次推出3D奧運(yùn)節(jié)目，并將通過Facebook面對9億用戶推出流媒體視頻應(yīng)用，以便用戶了解哪些賽事最受歡迎，親朋好友正在觀看什么內(nèi)容。

直播時(shí)間

倫敦奧運(yùn),是首次在全球范圍形成大規(guī)模網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播奧運(yùn)。網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播規(guī)模較大的有NBC、BBC、CCTV（中國中央電視臺)和NHK（日本全國廣播公司)等。

作為世界第二大經(jīng)濟(jì)體的中國，此次網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播倫敦奧運(yùn)并不落后于其他歐美國家。CCTV此次將網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播5600小時(shí)，其中4000小時(shí)直接轉(zhuǎn)播比賽，是世界各國網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播規(guī)模最大的。NBC將通過網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播3600小時(shí)以上，涵蓋全部302個(gè)項(xiàng)目的決賽。BBC將直播2500小時(shí)。BBC除了在BBC1臺和3臺直播之外，還將開通24個(gè)高清視頻點(diǎn)播頻道，供觀眾從網(wǎng)絡(luò)進(jìn)入隨時(shí)隨地收看自己中意的體育比賽項(xiàng)目。

實(shí)時(shí)直播

奧運(yùn)比賽轉(zhuǎn)播總會(huì)碰到時(shí)差問題，這是觀眾最關(guān)心的。譬如美國,NBC在往屆奧運(yùn)用重金購買的節(jié)目往往是延時(shí)錄播。體育節(jié)目主持人科斯塔斯曾主持過8屆冬季和夏季奧運(yùn)節(jié)目，倫敦奧運(yùn)將是他的第9屆。他回憶說，2000年在悉尼為美國國內(nèi)制作播出節(jié)目時(shí)，比賽早已結(jié)束，他甚至可以在報(bào)紙上讀到比賽的新聞報(bào)道。由于時(shí)差關(guān)系，有些電視節(jié)目在美國首次播出的時(shí)間甚至是比賽結(jié)束后的第二天。他稱之為歷史頻道的節(jié)目。2008年的北京奧運(yùn)，將游泳決賽安排在上午進(jìn)行，以便讓美國觀眾能在電視節(jié)目黃金時(shí)間段看到實(shí)時(shí)現(xiàn)場情況。

此次網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播，則宣告延時(shí)錄播時(shí)代的終結(jié)。對亞洲國家的超級熱心觀眾來說，可以熬夜實(shí)時(shí)收看直播。各大媒體的網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播，很多視頻將先于電視轉(zhuǎn)播而上線直播或者供觀眾點(diǎn)播。

免費(fèi)盛宴

中國各大網(wǎng)絡(luò)媒體為了在競爭中取勝，在上屆北京奧運(yùn)就出巨資爭奪直播、點(diǎn)播和轉(zhuǎn)播資源，本屆倫敦奧運(yùn)爭奪更為激烈。這些競爭的結(jié)果就是用戶可以免費(fèi)收看網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播。在英國，根據(jù)法律規(guī)定，對奧運(yùn)這樣的重大比賽，作為國營廣播電視媒體的BBC必須提供免費(fèi)轉(zhuǎn)播。但BBC可以同時(shí)將視頻有償提供給其他收費(fèi)電視臺。NBC雖然讓觀眾免費(fèi)觀看直播比賽，但附加了一個(gè)條件，即觀眾必須加入“可以觀看其系列節(jié)目的CATV和衛(wèi)星電視等收視網(wǎng)”。各國的免費(fèi)網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播也嚴(yán)格限制在其國內(nèi)，不對其他國家和地區(qū)的觀眾開放。奧運(yùn)網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播，為保護(hù)購買播放權(quán)的媒體的利益，嚴(yán)格禁止盜播和在社交網(wǎng)絡(luò)上自行發(fā)布新聞。國際奧委會(huì)對社交媒體有嚴(yán)格規(guī)定，禁止用戶以第三人稱描述比賽和發(fā)布比賽結(jié)果等新聞，不得在同一條博客消息中同時(shí)使用“2012”和“金”等字。

倫敦奧運(yùn)的視覺狂歡通過網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播而展示。開幕式、閉幕式，城市風(fēng)采、文化魅力，奧運(yùn)精神、五環(huán)友誼……很多年以后，人們還會(huì)留存網(wǎng)絡(luò)直播元年這樣的記憶?！?/p>

（本文照片由齊揚(yáng)提供）

London Olympics Marks Beginning of Era of Unprecedented Digital Coverage

By David Guo

Many people are aware, through media, that London Olympics Games is about to start. Gold medals, world records, and all the news about the 30th Olympiad will be widely covered in traditional news media such as television and newspaper. However, many people will witness the historic moments on mobile phones, mobile television, tablets and laptops. It is said that London Olympics 2012 marks the official beginning of internet digital coverage.

Unprecedented Internet and Internet Users

Some people may wonder how digital coverage through internet of Olympic Games starts in 2012. Many Chinese watched Olympic Games on internet in 2008 and BBC offered 1,000 hours of internet coverage on Athens Olympic Games in 2004. However, in those years, the world did not provide users of mobile devices with wireless media streaming. People had to be close to television sets and desktops to watch sport events. Words such as anytime and anywhere cannot be used to describe the coverage of yesteryears.

Over the past few years, high-speed media streaming has become an everyday phenomenon, reaching out to billions of users of mobile phones, tablets, laptops and mobile televisions anywhere and anytime. The large numbers of users of mobile devices exist to motivate media businesses to reach out for their attention. That is why 2012 Olympics Games is such an excellent opportunity for these media organizations to vie each other in getting their viewers through digital coverage. It is estimated that about two billion people will watch Olympic Games in London through Internet, accounting for nearly half of the 4.7-billion television watchers during 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

Unprecedented Coverage Hours

NBC offered 12-hour coverage in Tokyo Olympics in 1964 through a television satellite, averaging 45 minutes a day. In sharp contrast, digital coverage through internet is now a global phenomenon, that is, internet will reach hundreds of millions of users all over the world. The biggest broadcasters of 2012 Olympic Games include NBC, BBC, CCTV and NHK.

As the second largest economy of the world, China will offer 5,600 hours of digital coverage, including 4,000 hours of media streaming of matches. The mega scale indicates that CCTV is probably the largest broadcaster of the 2012 London Olympiad. NBC offers 3,600 hours, including all the finals of 302 events. BBC broadcasts 2,500 hours. In addition to blanket coverage on BBC1 and BBC3, the Olympic broadcaster will offer 24 channels for viewers to watch events.

Unprecedented Live Coverage

As time difference always exists for audiences in countries far away from the host country, many cannot watch live broadcast. In the past, NBC had to record events on tape and broadcast them later for primetime audience back home. In some cases, NBC would negotiate to rearrange final schedules so that American viewers could see finals live. For example, swimming finals in Beijing were arranged in the morning to cater to the largest primetime audience crowd. Bob Costas, whose anchorage in London will be his ninth Olympic mission, recalls that the American audience watched the broadcast one day after events had concluded in Sydney.

Worldwide digital coverage in 2012 means that people around the world will watch direct coverage. Enthusiasts in China can watch games in London directly and they do not have to watch television. They can access CNTV, a subsidiary of CCTV in charge of offering all the downward streaming for all users.

Unprecedented Free Access

For most people who are going to access the digital coverage from Olympic broadcasters, it is big free lunch in the world. In China, portals will compete on an unprecedented scale for traffic volumes. This Olympic broadcasting war is part of a never-stopping competition for attracting more users and beating competitors. In UK, such important sports events must be made free in the air for people in accordance with law. NBC will offer free digital streaming, too, but users are supposed to buy paid services for CATV or other satellite television services. A big reason for the universal free offer is that advertisers are willing to put commercials in these broadcast hours.

There are strict rules to protect the rights and interests of Olympic broadcasters and their partners. Viewers from other countries cannot access free digital streaming from broadcasters. Social media users are banned from acting as reporters and posting results. □