mr.x Posted August 18, 2008 Report Posted August 18, 2008 Vanoc to come up with a cure for Empty Seat Syndrome Vancouver's Olympic committee plans to sell every ticket for 2010 events Jeff Lee, Vancouver Sun Published: Monday, August 18, 2008 BEIJING - When International Olympic Committee members go to the gold medal hockey game in Vancouver in 2010, they'll be sitting in the upper bowl of GM Place, a long ways away from the front rows that will be sold to John Q. Public. And when the media go to write on the Games, they'll find far fewer desks in the prime spots of the venues, replaced with more seats for the paying public. That's because the Vancouver Organizing Committee is determined to find more seats to sell in order to solve a historic illness that has afflicted the Games - Empty Seat Syndrome. Coupled with one of the most aggressive and technologically advanced anti-scalping plans ever developed, Vanoc intends to make sure every seat at the 2010 Games is filled - and filled with authentic ticket holders. Empty seats have been a problem at most Olympic Games, even though tickets have often been sold out. Often it is because people who bought tickets to see an athlete or team lost interest if that person or team got knocked out of competition. At the Turin Winter Games two years ago, Vanoc executive vice-president Dave Cobb pledged to solve the problem in 2010 by bringing in technology that would allow unused tickets to be recycled to last-minute customers. He's also warned National Olympic Committees that if they are caught illegally supplying preferred-access tickets to ticket brokers - a traditional source of revenue for some committees - they risk having every ticket sold to them to cancelled through bar-code technology. On Monday, Cobb said the problem of getting tickets into the hands of the public appears to be just as severe in Beijing, where there is high demand for some events but seats still go empty. But he's also taking on the IOC and the press for a share of the best areas in the house, often at finish lines or in prime viewing spots. To paying customers on the other side of the venue, they look enticing but empty and unused except for the best events. Cobb was in the Water Cube National Swimming Centre the other day and was surprised to see a lot of empty seats in the accredited areas reserved for the IOC, press and broadcasters. "Almost an entire half of the entire venue was taken up [with reserved seats]. For every gold medal Michael Phelps swam there were hundreds and hundreds of empty seats in these areas," he said. That's not going to happen in Vancouver, where 30 per cent of the 1.6 million available tickets are being reserved for members of the "Olympic Family," including sponsors, IOC members and the media. The other 70 per cent goes on sale starting Oct. 3, with a lottery system in place for the highest-demand sports. Cobb said the IOC has tentatively agreed to move from the best seats to the upper balcony of GM Place, and to reduce the number of tickets it gets during the preliminary rounds. "Historically they have been too big and we need to really push hard at changing the traditional size of these areas and to shrink them and expand the number of seats we can sell to the public," he said. "I think given the experience here in Beijing, we are going to find we have some support in doing that." The media will be a bigger problem. "The one I would say I am not satisfied with yet is the press. Every seat at a table that a press person takes is three seats that spectators could sit in. I think they are far too big and unnecessary for a lot of people," Cobb said. But media organizations routinely complain about not having enough tickets to high-demand sports. Although journalists have open access to most events, there is a quota system for events such as opening and closing ceremonies, swimming and gymnastics finals in summer, and hockey and figure skating in winter. At both summer and winter Games, attendance is still an issue for less-popular events. But Cobb doesn't believe that will be the case in 2010, where he expects tickets to sell out. "We know the demand for winter sport in our city is going to be beyond what it has ever been for a Winter Games and we're willing to put in that effort and that fight to free up as many seats as we can," he said. jefflee@vancouversun.com
YellowVest Posted August 18, 2008 Report Posted August 18, 2008 Find a solution to burning the Flame in the dome! That's important.
Kenadian Posted August 18, 2008 Report Posted August 18, 2008 Solution: don't have the flame in the dome. OK, now focus on selling those tickets.
YellowVest Posted August 18, 2008 Report Posted August 18, 2008 The IOC Charter is specific. The Torch Bearer must light the cauldron in front of the spectators. So the Flame will INDEED be INSIDE the dome. There may be one outside BC Place also, and likely will, but the Main Flame will be INSIDE. This will be hilarious. Did you see the size of that Flame in Beijing? They'll have the flames licking the Roof! Absurd!
Orangevest Posted August 18, 2008 Report Posted August 18, 2008 They will light a small cauldron inside but a larger one will be visible throught the city. How they have the flame travel from one to the other is going to be very special.
Kenadian Posted August 18, 2008 Report Posted August 18, 2008 The IOC Charter is specific. The Torch Bearer must light the cauldron in front of the spectators.So the Flame will INDEED be INSIDE the dome. There may be one outside BC Place also, and likely will, but the Main Flame will be INSIDE. This will be hilarious. Did you see the size of that Flame in Beijing? They'll have the flames licking the Roof! Absurd! The IOC is pretty flexible about what it says in writing and what it does in practice. Just ask the people of the People's Republic of China and the German Third Reich. Just because VANOC hasn't issued the biggest secret of the Olympics in a press release, doesn't mean they don't have a plan. I'm not gonna worry.
mr.x Posted August 18, 2008 Author Report Posted August 18, 2008 how is this even relevant to the topic at hand: empty seats? Haven't you created a dozen other topics to vent on about the exact same issue? Thanks for ruining another topic.
thatsnotmypuppy Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 BOCOG has come up with a solution - sort of. Every morning there is a distribution of paper tickets (basically glossy red paper) that allow entry to each venue for a specific session. These tickets do not have any allocated seating. So if you come late you will find a Chinese person in your seat. They just get up and sit in another empty seat. Apparently 10,000 or so are given out for each athletics session and lesser numbers at others. Once the venue 80% capacity is reached people are turned away except those with proper tickets. If the venue is full those with the paper tickets have to leave or stand if there is room. Thus there are alot less empty seats on show. Also only Chinese nationals can get or use these tickets. Clever - but annoying for us Westerners!
SkiFreak Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 Simple solution for empty seat syndrome! Use dummies and blow-up dolls. People are already doing it with the HOV lanes on the Trans Canada highway around Vancouver.
jim jones Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 BOCOG has come up with a solution - sort of. Every morning there is a distribution of paper tickets (basically glossy red paper) that allow entry to each venue for a specific session. These tickets do not have any allocated seating. So if you come late you will find a Chinese person in your seat. They just get up and sit in another empty seat. Apparently 10,000 or so are given out for each athletics session and lesser numbers at others. Once the venue 80% capacity is reached people are turned away except those with proper tickets. If the venue is full those with the paper tickets have to leave or stand if there is room. Thus there are alot less empty seats on show. Also only Chinese nationals can get or use these tickets. Clever - but annoying for us Westerners! A seat warming system could also be set up. Vancouver has a huge amount of applicants for Volunteers way beyond the need. They could have pool of people at the different venues or roving squads to be seated in Corporate Partner seating or family member seating until the seat holder arrives. They could also be doing stand by sales and seat rentals at the venues. Considering Vancouver is the largest city for population to host the winter games and the Alpine, Nordic, Ski Jumping and sliding events are quite far away you are going to have a general division of choice. As to the Clever nature of the Chinese Puppy you are a Western Capitalist Pig Dog. LOL jim jones
NYCD 2012 Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 A seat warming system could also be set up. Vancouver has a huge amount of applicants for Volunteers way beyond the need. They could have pool of people at the different venues or roving squads to be seated in Corporate Partner seating or family member seating until the seat holder arrives. They could also be doing stand by sales and seat rentals at the venues. Maybe you suggest that to the Nigerians, they probaly the only people naive enough to believe you
baron-pierreIV Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 Why bother with these seat-fillers? Try my earlier suggestion. Paint all seats BLUE -- and just digitally fill in the empty ones. Simple solution -- no fuss!!!
YellowVest Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 I understand in Beijing tickets to the Opening / Closing ceremonies had the persons I.D. printed on the ticket and they had to show I.D. at the door. It looked a bit like a Backstage Pass to a concert. Similar I.D. system here for 2010?
Kenadian Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 Two birds with one stone: use the homeless. They get off the street, get a warm place to sit down, and VANOC literally gets bums in seats.
baron-pierreIV Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 I understand in Beijing tickets to the Opening / Closing ceremonies had the persons I.D. printed on the ticket and they had to show I.D. at the door. It looked a bit like a Backstage Pass to a concert.Similar I.D. system here for 2010? YV, might look good on paper, but in reality it doesn't work -- especially for foreign visitors. There are too many variables to hold ticket buyers and holders to that cumbersome scheme. They had to junk it at the last minute. Tickets are bought and re-sold; or given away as gifts, or if you can't make it at the last minute, handed off to someone else. Besides, there are enough stringent security measures at the gates.
YellowVest Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 Well here in Vancouver they're going to set up a similar ID system for people travelling on our transit system, the SkyTrain. Your ID will be printed on the Pass you buy so if you get busted by the cops for fare evasion, you can be fully and more efficiantly prosecuted. Or even tasered. Here in Vancouver if you don't pay the proper fare you can be tasered. Big Brother will be able to track your whereabouts, where you go everyday, how many trains you take, etc. I also here they will have special electronic chips hermetically sealed inside the Passes so the Government will be able to track your movements by GPS satellite.
Kenadian Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 I guess they want to make sure they know who is in the dome when BC Place explodes, right?
YellowVest Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 BC Place won't explode if they use a small enough flame that it won't cause a problem. My point has always been, let's have the Biggest flame to show the world how great our Games will be. A small flame doesn't do the trick. We could use a bigger flame with a Retractable Roof. Even with the roof closed, there's still enough ventilation around the edges with that design.
jim jones Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 Maybe you suggest that to the Nigerians, they probaly the only people naive enough to believe you Well considering your Sorry City's OC for the First Youth Olympics has to backpedal with a Games Village you would be well enough to keep your comments about Nigeria to yourself LOL. Something that Singapore Can't keep to a 35 million dollars budget for those games without blowing the Jacques Rogge Imposed Budget CAP. Of Course Hey Singapore Didn't even pay broadcasting rights for the last commonwealth games and Basically has to Buy Chinese Athletes to Compete in most international competitions. AS to Seat warmers puppy has really outlined it to an extent taking place in Beijing anyways. Also shown has been the cheer leading Squads in the stands with Yellow Shirts. Beijing 2008 has 70000 volunteers but could have had 2 million who applied. Many a Sports Festival does it by shipping in Students. Manchester 2002 did it . Glasgow 2014 will certainly do it and then there are give aways . In Early Tv in the United States it was done actually with Roller Derbys in Madison Square Garden . The promoters would only get half filled houses so when they got into TV coverage they put the Tv Cameras on one side of the Gardens and 9000 people on the other side without showing the empty seats behind the Camera men . The next week Madison Square Garden had a sold out Roller Derby and that continued for a long time. Simply the promoters used Human Nature that it was so excited to watch that they filled Madison Square Garden when in fact it was Stage managed by the broadcasters and the promotors. The Empty Seat thing can be overcome. China certainly showed the way that it could be possibly done. A Hospitality Area at the venues and a policy perhaps that no one was to be seated 30 minutes after the event started could probably cure it as well. There are many creative ways it could be done. Paging via SMS messaging for Standby buyers is another way. SMS confirmation for No shows is another. Curtains, with Digital prints for the Games bunting, is another way to conceal emtpy seats in the higher tiers. Until the lower sections are filled the Curtains remain Closed. There could even be incentives for Seat Warmers. Do all that is asked of you during the Games IE moving out of the seats as people arrive and you get to sit in a special section for the most desired finals free of charge. The Ticket Sales are really minor compared to the TV Rights and Sponsorship for the IOC . And for the Local Organizing Committee and the Host Country it is that you are presenting your country as a lively viable place. especially a Frontier Location . Frontier cities are going to fall on the Olympics now like lumber in a forest. Beijing has now surpassed the Atlanta games for US TV Audience becoming the Highest watched Olympics ever . The lure of seeing something not normally exposed to Americans is a good part of the increased ratings. This bodes very well for RIO 2016. Everyone has been to Chicago Practically in America and it is very familiar. Jim jones
YellowVest Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 I can see empty seats for our Opening Ceremonies. Who in their right mind would pay $ 1100 to see a tiny flame burning in a dome
jim jones Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 BC Place won't explode if they use a small enough flame that it won't cause a problem.My point has always been, let's have the Biggest flame to show the world how great our Games will be. A small flame doesn't do the trick. We could use a bigger flame with a Retractable Roof. Even with the roof closed, there's still enough ventilation around the edges with that design. Please grow up because you talk like an Idiot . Saying the flame would be 4000 degrees ? whats the melting point of Different Metals ? Considering that Universial Studios has an indoor BackDraft exhibit for the last decade where people go thru a soundstage with flames leaping 20 feet shows your Stupid theory can be laid to rest . This is done with High pressure curtains of air and certainly there is nothing that says an Exhaust Hood could not be over the Calderon in BC place. Bombardier is engineering it and these people certainly are capable of providing a solution which is basically out there anyways. Geese hows does Kiss or the Rolling Stones play BC place. I have seen the videos on those groups performing with Pyro and Fire balls going off Here is the Melting points of Metals and only Tungsten, Columbium, Iridium, Ruthenium and Tantalum survive at 4000 degrees F. from my research most caldrons have been made of Steel, Aluminum and Cast Iron . Nothing near as exotic as metals able to withstand 4000 degrees. Salt Lake City's caldron was made of Steel and Glass. Jim jones Aluminium 660 C 1220 F Antimony 630 1167 Arsenic 817 1503 Barium 710 1310 Beryllium 1284 2343 Bismuth 271 520 Boron 2100 3812 Calcium 850 1562 Cerium 793 1460 Chromium 1550 2822 Cobalt 1493 2719 Columbium 2415 4379 Copper 1083 1979 Gold 1063 1945 Gallium 30 86 Germanium 958 1756 Erbium 1250 2283 Europium 1150 2102 Hafnium 2130 3866 Indium 156 313 Iron 1540 2804 Iridium 2454 4449 Lanthanum 835 1535 Lead 327 621 Lithium 186 367 Magnesium 651 1204 Mercury -38 -38 Neodymium 820 1508 Nickel 1455 2651 Osmium 2700 4892 Palladium 1554 2829 Platinum 1773 3223 Rhodium 1966 3571 Ruthenium 2400 4352 Samarium 1350 2462 Selenium 217 423 Silicon 1410 2570 Silver 960 1760 Strontium 770 1418 Tantalum 2996 5425 Tellurium 452 846 Thorium 1842 3348 Tin 232 449 Tungsten 3400 6152 Uranium 1133 2071 Vanadium 1900 3452 Yttrium 1452 2646 Zinc 419 787 Zirconium 1830 3326
jim jones Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 I can see empty seats for our Opening Ceremonies. Who in their right mind would pay $ 1100 to see a tiny flame burning in a dome Well I am pretty sure they would not miss your ugly attitude LOL. Who knows after Beijings opening you might see people buying out of mere wonder if Vancouver will top that. If it is not sold out well in advance then whats to say they don't discount and provide top payers with some freebee tickets to other events ? 50000 to 60000 seats is not a huge number to sell considering this is a global event following the most watched Olympics ever. I am sure Seattle and other west coast places in the US will come into play for Sales. Jim jones
Kenadian Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 What is your flame obsession? There's more to the Olympics and the Olympic Ceremony than that flicker of fire. We'd all like the stadium to be in best condition for 2010. But since none of us work for VANOC, none of us own BC Place, and none of us are going to pony up the funds for a new roof, we can't do anything more than hope for the best. And did you ever think that maybe they'll have a big flame for the ceremonies, then put the gas on low flicker for the rest of the time?
YellowVest Posted August 21, 2008 Report Posted August 21, 2008 What percentage of the seats will be allocated to B.C.?
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