China's CCTV.com wins Beijing Games new media rights

ATHENS (Reuters) - The International Olympic Committee (IOC) said on Tuesday it had awarded the Beijing 2008 Games internet and mobile phone platform rights for China to the digital arm of Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.

The IOC has already sold over-the-air TV rights in China for the Games to CCTV.

"By granting digital rights to CCTV.com, the IOC believes CCTV.com's digital team will work closely with the broadcast team at CCTV to develop joint executions across media platforms," Richard Carrion, a member of the IOC's TV rights and new media commission, said in a statement.

"This will ensure Chinese Olympic fans have access to the best possible Olympic coverage in 2008."

The IOC is eager to boost deals with new media as it bids to extend the reach of the Games to a younger audience and diversify its media contracts for the Games.

"We look forward to working with our broadcast partner CCTV and its digital arm, CCTV.com, to bring the excitement of the Olympic Games to a new generation of fans in China," IOC President Jacques Rogge said.

Income from broadcasting and new media rights for the Vancouver 2010 and London 2012 Olympics have already risen nearly 40 percent from the previous two-Games package, which includes the Beijing Olympics, and will be in excess of $3.0 billion.

The IOC estimates some 15 percent of that will come from new media including the internet and mobile phones.

The IOC received about $2.5 billion for broadcasting rights for the Turin 2006 Winter Games and the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics.

(Writing by Karolos Grohmann; editing by Miles Evans)