This presentation investigates 'Transmedia Storytelling' used in the London Olympics 2012.

1. TRANSMEDIA
STORYTELLING IN
THE LONDON
OLYMPICS
PP1 - RESEARCH PRESENTATION
XIAODI LIU (FIONA) – s3267266
NIKITA MELWANI – s3314783

2. Investigate how transmedia
storytelling is used not just
on a media scale, but how it
is used for different sectors
and industries for a major
world event with focus on the
London Olympics 2012

3. THE LONDON OLYMPICS 2012
- One of the biggest Global sporting and cultural events in the World.
- 4 billion estimated global audience for the opening ceremony on 27th
July 2012.
- Held in London, U.K. from 27th July to 12th August.
- 10,500 athletes representing 205 nations, competing in 302 events.
- Approx. 52 million people - 90% of the UK population watched the
Olympics for at least 15 minutes.
The London Olympics is
considered the first real
social media
games, with millions of
people – including many
of the athletes
themselves –
commenting on Twitter

4. HOW IS THE OLYMPICS A
TRANSMEDIA EXAMPLE?
- Hundreds of platforms ranging from
different tools were used in both
„online‟ and „offline‟ methods.
- These platforms interweaved with one
another to create awareness, unity and
excitement for the Olympics.
- Sponsors and Brands such as Coca
Cola, Visa, Samsung & McDonalds
were given the chance to be part of the
audience conversation, instead of
solely being an advertising tool.
- In particular, interaction was shared
between athletes and audience making
the „star athlete‟ a „global superstar‟ as
fans connected with athletes via social
media.

5. WHAT
TRANSMEDIA
ELEMENTS WERE
USED FOR THE
OLYMPICS AND
HOW?

6. 1. PLATFORMS
- A massive range of platforms were
used to promote, sponsor and share
the journey of the Olympics from
beginning to end.
- Platforms ranged from social
networking & media
websites, collaboration
tools, multimedia sharing to
broadcasting!
- The joint use of these platforms was
used for the first time since the history
of the Olympics.
- The effect of this made sponsors the
link between consumer and product.

7. 2. WORLDWIDE OLYMPIC
SPONSORS & PARTNERS

8. CNN WORDPRESS PINTEREST
FACEBOOK GOOGLE+
TWITTER INSTAGRAM
MYSPACE BBC
ABC TUMBLR
VIMEO
YOUTUBE
YAHOO
BEBO
MULTIPLY
PICASA WEIBO
WIKIPEDIA VIMEO
REN FLICKR
YOUKU
REN TUDOULINKEDIN

10. KEY THEORIST #1 – CARLOS
ALBERTO SCOLARI
“TS (Transmedia Storytelling) not only
affects the text but also includes
transformations in the production and
consumption processes. Researchers
and producers visualize new business
opportunities for the media market as
new generations of consumers develop
the skills to deal with the flow of stories
and become hunters of information
from multiple sources.”
(Scolari, C.A. 2009, pp, 589)

11. 3. AUDIENCE INTERACTION
- Audience interaction came into full force with the
London Olympics.
- For example, fans were given the option to
record a cheer for their favorite athlete on
Facebook.
- This gave fans the opportunity to engage at a
personal level with athletes, as well as creating a
bigger social network for the fan base.
- The mixture of different levels of interaction
between audiences can be categorized into three
personas; hardcore, casual and the observer.
- Audience interaction was highly successful due
to the range & consumption communicated from
the vast range of platforms.

13. 4. ‘ONLINE’ AND ‘OFFLINE’
COLLABORATION
- „Online‟ and „Offline‟ collaboration methods worked
hand in hand and contributed significantly to audience
interaction.
- In particular, in terms of a „Offline‟ method, Coca Cola
built a Beatbox Pavillion in the Olympic Village where
park visitors came and “played” the building like a
musical instrument once the Olympics began.
- The „Offline‟ collaboration never stops – even until
now!
- On February 27th 2012, it was announced that an
Olympian Museum will be opened at the park in 2014
for all types of audiences – whether it be the fans, the
people of London or tourists!
- This gives audiences the chance to visit and re-
experience the London Olympics 2012 through a
physical event.
- This links and feeds to Coca Cola‟s „Move to the Beat‟
campaign that was advertised worldwide.

15. KEY THEORIST #2 – HENRY
JENKINS
“Storytellers exploit this
potential for Transmedia
Storytelling; advertisers talk
about branding as depending
on multiple touch points;
networks seek to exploit their
intellectual properties across
many different channels.”
(Jenkins, 2006, pp. 46).

17. WHAT WE FOUND INTERESTING
OVERALL
- How transmedia storytelling is not just utilized in
media but rather, how it can be employed in every field
& industry.
- How „universal‟ it was in terms of catering to all
demographics.
- How successful the transmedia elements contributed
to high engagement of audiences worldwide.

18. CONCLUSION
- This case study has been a demonstration of how transmedia
storytelling has developed within recent years.
- Reinforces that fact that transmedia is going to play a prominent
role in the future.
- Redefined the future of broadcasting, social media, accessibility
and the use of platforms to audiences worldwide.
- To conclude, this was a very unique way of transmedia
storytelling that we think should inspire future projects to come.

19. REFERENCES
• Katie Kuhn, 2012, Transmedia: The 2012 Approach to Sponsoring the Olympics, iMEDIA CONNECTION, viewed April
1, 2013, <http://blogs.imediaconnection.com/blog/2012/07/30/transmedia-the-2012-approach-to-sponsoring-the-olympics/>
• Jenkins, H, 2006, Convergence Culture, NYU Press, pp. 46
• Scolari, C.A, 2009, Transmedia Storytelling: Implicit Consumers, Narrative Worlds, and Branding in Contemporary Media
Production, International Journal of Communication, viewed April 4, 2013, < http://ncadjarmstrong.com/year-3-postmodern-
moving/transmedia_storytelling-.pdf>
• The Olympic Partner (Top) Programme, viewed April 6, 2013,<http://www.olympic.org/sponsors>
• IOC Marketing: Media Guide, viewed 7
April, 2013, <http://www.olympic.org/Documents/IOC_Marketing/London_2012/IOC_Marketing_Media_Guide_2012.pdf>
• Douglas, T, 2012, London Olympics Give Boost to Media, viewed 7 April, 2013, <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-
19253278>
• Youtube, Move to the Beat of London 2012 Commercial, viewed 7 April, 2013, < http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bgVbBvp4X8>
• Transmedia: The 2012 Approach to Olympic Sponsorship, viewed 8 April, 2013, < http://transmedia.ca/2012/07/transmedia-the-
london-2012-approach-to-sponsorship/>
• Brian, C, 2012, A transmedia Olympic Games, viewed 8 April, 2013, <http://www.warc.com/Blogs/BlogTitle.blog?id=1576>
• ABC Grandstand Sport, ABC Local Radio Olympic Games Broadcast Schedule, viewed 8
April, 2013, <http://www.abc.net.au/news/sport/olympics/broadcast-schedule/>
• Olympian Facebook – The Social Media Hub for London 2012, viewed 8 April, 2013, < http://www.lucidity.ie/blog/141-olympian-
facebook-the-social-media-hub-for-london-2012>
• Youtube, Visa Olympics London 2012: Michael Phelps Team Visa Athlete Countless Medals Commercial, viewed 8 April, 2013, <
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9m5SOfxPxk>