More than?7 million very affordable tickets are now on sale
for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, the Beijing
Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (BOCOG)
announced today. About 75% of the tickets will be sold domestically
and the rest will be available to the overseas public.
Late last year, BOCOG announced that ticket prices for the Games
will be in keeping with its efforts to host Games accessible to the
broadest spectrum of people.
Anticipating a high level of demand, BOCOG Executive Vice
President and Secretary General Wang Wei reiterated that the
ticketing process will be conducted in the most efficient, fair and
open manner possible and will follow internationally-accepted
practices.
BOCOG will initiate a three-phased ticketing process for
domestic sales. In each phase, residents on the Chinese mainland
will be able to order tickets through the official ticketing
website (http://tickets.beijing2008.com),
calling the BOCOG ticketing call center (+86-10-952008), or through
designated Bank of China branches.
For overseas sales, the process will be determined in each
country and territory by its National Olympic Committee and its
ticketing agent.
Domestic Ticketing Phases
On the Chinese mainland, Phase One of the ticketing process will
run from now through the end of September 2007. During this first
phase, 50% of the total 2.2 million domestic tickets for
competition sessions and the estimated 26,000 tickets available for
the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, respectively, will be open to
the domestic public.
Orders will be fulfilled through a process of ordering and
confirmation by random selection. The first half of the period will
be dedicated to collecting orders in which prospective ticket
buyers indicate for which events they want tickets, and the
second-half will be spent trying to determine whether the supply
equals the demand for certain events. This approach provides
everyone an equal chance of purchasing tickets that are in high
demand.
From April 15 to June 30, individuals can place orders through
the official BOCOG ticketing website, by submitting completed order
forms to designated Bank of China outlets or by mailing a form to
Beijing Gehua Ticketmaster Ticketing Co, Ltd. Forms will be
available at all Bank of China branches, in newspapers and on the
official website.
From July to August, 2007, tickets will be assigned to completed
orders. For oversubscribed events, tickets will be allocated using
a random computerized selection process.
A similar ordering process will be conducted in Phase Two, which
will take place from October to December 2007. Remaining available
tickets from Phase One and the other 50% of the competition tickets
for sale domestically will be open to the public during this
period. Tickets can be ordered through the official website, at
designated Bank of China outlets or the ticketing call center, but
in this phase tickets will be allocated on a "first-come,
first-serve" basis.
A real-time sales process will be conducted in Phase Three from
April 2008 until the end of the Olympic Games where tickets will be
issued directly upon payment.
Form of Ticket and Payment
Souvenir tickets will be used for ticket orders fulfilled in
Phases One and Two. Individuals will be prompted to collect their
souvenir tickets at designated Bank of China outlets. Individuals
who purchase tickets during Phase Three will receive
thermal-printed tickets.
Payment will be required once the order is confirmed in Phase
One. In Phase Two, payment is required together with the ticket
order. Individuals may pay for tickets by using cash, a VISA card
or by deducting the required amount from a current Bank of China
account.
Overseas Sales
The overseas public, including overseas Chinese, will be able to
order tickets from their respective National Olympic Committees and
their designated agents. Residents of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region should purchase tickets through the
designated agent of the Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of
Hong Kong China. Residents in Macau Special Administrative Region
should purchase tickets through the Macau Sport Development Board.
Residents in Taiwan should purchase tickets from the designated
agent of the Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee.
Ticket Availability
During the press conference, BOCOG officials underscored their
commitment to providing a wide cross-section of society the chance
to enjoy the Games and gave their assurances that they will
maintain a fair and transparent sales program.
In all Olympic Games, the number of Opening and Closing
Ceremonies tickets on-sale to the general public is restricted by
the seats needed to be provided to a number of constituent groups
involved in organizing the Olympic Games, including the media and
official delegations, and by those seats taken up by equipment to
produce the ceremonies.
For Beijing 2008, 40 percent of the estimated 60,000 Opening
Ceremony tickets on sale to the general public, or about 26,000
tickets, will be available to residents of Chinese mainland. This
represents a seven percent increase over the 33 percent of Opening
Ceremony tickets available to European Union residents during the
Athens 2004 Olympic Games.
To offer the largest number of people the opportunity to watch
the Olympic Games, BOCOG will limit the number of tickets each
individual may purchase. Each person may only purchase one ticket
for the Opening and Closing Ceremonies. Individuals are limited to
two tickets for high demand competition sessions. Individuals will
be limited to three-to-five tickets for other competition sessions
according to demand for those sessions.
Tickets for Opening and Closing Ceremonies are not transferable
indiscriminately. Those who wish to transfer tickets for Opening
and Closing Ceremonies will need to follow BOCOG's ticket transfer
policy, which is currently under development.
Green Olympics, High-tech Olympics, People's
Olympics
In developing the program, BOCOG took into account the spirit
and values of the Olympic Games, and its three concepts – "Green
Olympics, High-tech Olympics, and People's Olympics." The ticketing
program also fully reflects its theme-slogan, "One World One
Dream."
Tickets were made affordable to ensure the greatest number of
people would enjoy the Olympic Games. In line with its Olympic
Education Program, a number of tickets will be reserved for primary
and middle school students and young athletes. The tickets will use
environmentally-friendly materials and modern anti-counterfeiting
technologies will be adopted. To provide better services to the
general public, BOCOG will authorize multiple sales points for
tickets.
Oversight
To ensure fairness and transparency in the sales process, the
Supervision Commission of the Games of the XXIX Olympiad and
BOCOG's Audit and Supervision Department will oversee the ticketing
program. It will especially monitor methods to prevent fraud,
ensure allotments are maintained and prevent abuse of the
random-selection process.
Organizers also welcome cooperation from the general public.
Reports of violations can be addressed to the Supervision
Commission at +86 -10- 6669-8127 or jiandu2008@beijing2008.cn.
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Official Ticketing Website: http://tickets.beijing2008.com
BOCOG Ticketing Call Center: +86 -10- 952008
(BOCOG, April 15, 2007)