Fran Edwards in Press Operations, has provided the following, but notes that this information is a work in progress and still subject to change.
ACCREDITATION
Firstly on accreditation, the process is the same as previous Games. Press and photographers wishing to have accreditation must go through their respective National Olympic Committee (NOC). Those approved will receive an E (or EP in the case of photographers) pass. Specialist accreditations (Es and EPs) are available for equestrian journalists and NOCs have been asked by the IOC to keep some accreditations aside for recognised specialists in the sport.
VENUE MEDIA CENTRE
The venue media centre for the equestrian is located in the library of the Maritime Museum at Greenwich. We are doing detailed planning of this space so we can’t provide definitive answers to your questions but are working to provide, among all the other services and facilities, 150 press and 50 photographer workspaces. These capacities have been discussed and agreed with the IOC. The Media Conference Room will be located nearby, with a capacity of 100.
We are also working on the capacities in the tribunes and are planning for 150 tabled seats and up to 200 non tabled seats.
INTERNET
Note that every work desk in the venue media centre and on the tabled tribunes will have a cabled internet connection. Various internet options will be available to order from the Press Rate Card, with prices and services ranging from �£90 (1Mbps) to �£150 (8 Mbps up and down and myInfo+ account included). In February 2011, LOCOG will send the link to the Press Rate Card online ordering website to the NOCs, to be forwarded to accredited press organisations.
ACCOMMODATION
LOCOG has reserved press accommodation in the Bloomsbury area of London, ranging from four-star hotel accommodation to university rooms with shared facilities. In February 2011, LOCOG will send the link to the online reservation site to the NOCs, to be forwarded to accredited press organisations.
As the accommodation is in Bloomsbury, there will be a media transport hub at Russell Square, within walking distance to many press hotels (and hotel to hub shuttle service for hotels not in walking distance). This hub will service the Main Media Complex in Olympic Park and the competition venues, including Greenwich Park.
MEDIA MANAGER
We hope to begin the recruitment for all venue media managers early next year however staff won’t be full time until 2012. It’s likely that the equestrian role will begin around three months out from Games time. All paid positions will be advertised on the London 2012 website. Locog response to queries raised about internet:
A note in the Press Rate Card indicates that the 1 Mbps internet service is not suitable for filing photos, but may be useful, for example, for those who simply need to check emails. Regarding the 8 Mbps service, at 1/20 contention, please note that this is both up and down speed. We’ve had positive feedback thus far on this from our photo manager, the IOC and after consultation with sports photographers. The expectation is that most media will take the 8mbps option which has the capacity to cope with significant users (photographers and journalists alike, without the need to have a separate “pipe”). The 1 mbps option is simply another offer, just at a cheaper price for those who only need email to send smaller files like word documents.
Wifi will be offered as part of each internet package and is available in media conference rooms and media lounges. The decision was made to go for cabled internet in the workrooms and in tribunes to ensure we could deliver a reliable and robust service. As mentioned previously, every desk in the workroom and tabled tribune positions will be cabled ââ?¬â?? which is the first time at an Olympic Games.