Beijing Olympics Causing Internet Dispute

A deal which was confirmed in 2005 is now causing serious headaches for Sohu.com, a Chinese Internet portal which obtained the rights to create the website and the logo for the upcoming competition. But this wasn't the fact that upset the competition. According to AFP, Sohu.com claims it owns the exclusive rights for the sponsors' advertising which means this portal is the only website that can publish adverts created by Bank of China, Adidas or Volkswagen and related to the Beijing Olympics. Obviously, the rivals sustain it's OK to have the exclusive rights over the logo but the advertising is a domain which brings millions of dollars and that's way too much.

However, Sohu.com sustains the competition is willing to do anything it's possible because their deal is pretty impressive and it can really bring millions to the company. "In China the Internet industry is very tough and the competition will do whatever it can to fight this deal because they know it's a big one," said Chen Luming, Sohu.com vice-president and chief of its Olympic business division, according to AFP.

At this time, the Beijing organizing authorities try to clarify the issue and sustain new details will be announced soon. "Our legal department is still working to determine what is exclusive and what is not," said Niu Wei, an official of BOCOG's, the committee which analyses the deal, said for the same source.

Meanwhile, the rivals comment on the deal, saying that the committee must clarify the issue because there are too many bogus details in the agreement.

"They have paid to get the rights to set up the official website of the Games and we are okay with that. They get to use the logo as well but anything beyond that is bogus. The claim about exclusivity on advertising has no basis... It would be like saying that all Olympic sponsors in the US would have to put their TV ads on NBC," Zeng Fuhu, general manager of portal business at Tom.Com which competes with Sohu.com, said for AFP.