RSS
Twitter
And The Gold Medal For Stupidity Goes To...
from the greedathlon dept
We've discussed before the asinine level of special protection Olympic organizers regularly demand for their trademarks and even plenty of common words, as well as event sponsors. However, organizers of the 2012 summer games in London have set the bar for stupidity even higher by apparently decreeing that it will only use security technology provided by paid sponsors. Even with the ridiculously high level of concern over security at these events, organizers won't choose the best solutions, just those provided by companies that have paid to sponsor the games. This means that, apparently, matters of identity management and authentication will be left up to Visa. Yes, that's the Visa that's a credit-card company for which data leaks, identity protection and authentication are in no way a problem. While we're handing out medals for stupidity, let's go ahead and give the silver to the site on which the original article appears for its annoying registration scheme. Visit the page once, and everything's cool. Visit it again, and you get hit with a demand to register, which seems like a really, really great way to encourage new visitors to the site to read more keep coming back.
Reader Comments
(Flattened / Threaded)
hrmm...
they must have changed something..
Visit the page once, and everything's cool. Visit it again, and you get hit with a demand to register, which seems like a really, really great way to encourage new visitors to the site to read more keep coming back.
Its not doing that now. Unless you were referring to a different site than the one you linked to.
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Re: hrmm...
indeed, can't find that behaviour also... I guess they feared the wrath of Techdirt ;)
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
There appears to be some kind of time limit, click a few links and all is well but at some point it does demand you register.
Still, it's a good site so I did, didn't cost anything and I used a disposable Gmail account so no problem with privacy.
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
More of a reason...
to not watch the Olympics. It's not like the cost to put on the events are going up. This is all about someone trying to figure out how to sqeeze more money out of it. The Olympics used to be about competition between athletes (and metaphorically between nations). Now its just corporations trying to make money.
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Damn
we all know that visa isn't the best solution for security issues, so WHY are thay trying to do this stupid think? It can't be just about the money...
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Re: Damn
Oh yes it is about the money. Visa is a sponsor (probably the largest sponsor among companies in their same business) of the Olympics so that's how they were chosen.
Kinda like if Nike is the biggest shoe sponsor then you will see more Nike ads than Adidas, Rebbok and other shoe brands.
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Re: Re: Damn
well...
I think a better analogy would be if they banned employees from wearing reeboks because reebok didnt sponsor the event.
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
I'm not shocked.
I gave up on the Olympics when they admitted ball room dancing as a sport.
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Re: I'm not shocked.
Ballroom Dancing is a SPORT?!!
I missed that - I vote tiddlywinks for 2012
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Re: Re: I'm not shocked.
Yeah, people seem to think anything remotely athletic is a sport. I lump those kinds of activities in with cheer leading, curling, and bi/triathlons. They may require physical performance and athletes partake in them, but they are not a sport. I think that's why they call it the "Olympic Games" and not the "Olympic Sports".
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Re: Re: Re: I'm not shocked.
I agree. But I don't think it'll change, not in an age when ESPN airs spelling bees and poker tournaments...
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Re: Re: Re: Re: I'm not shocked.
if you disable cookies for any site that asks for a registration after you view a few pages it usually stops you from getting asked to register and lets you browse the site because it tricks the site into cheap battery thinking you are visiting it for the first time every time because there's no cookie.
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Re: I'm not shocked.
Absolutely agree. The Olympics has become like NCAA Football with it's zillion's of oh so meaningless bowl games. And TV coverage is horrid...unless of course you like waking up 2:45 am to watch Botswana play Outer Mongolia in Air Hockey.
GO X-Games, at least they have remained interesting.
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Y'know, last thursday, Blackwall tunnel in London (a major way to get past the Thames) was shut down for about 40 minutes, causing a 5-mile tailback, just because an old guy's motorbike broke down inside it. That was it.
Unless some seriously huge changes are made within the next 5 years, London is going to be the world's largest gridlock when the Olympics come here.
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
if you disable cookies for any site that asks for a registration after you view a few pages it usually stops you from getting asked to register and lets you browse the site because it tricks the site into thinking you are visiting it for the first time every time because there's no cookie.
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Yawwwwwnnnnnnn
No comment just sleepy
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
$$$$$$$$$$$
I gave up when the answer to the Russian 'career amatuer' athlete was Dream Teams and allowing pro athletes into the games.
Will the Olympics be enough of an enticement to get a/some high-end security enterprise to pony up to provide the service?
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Infringement
Careful, you used the word "silver" in a way that implied it was associated with "silver metal"; clearly you are infringing on the sacred trademarks of the Olympics...
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Re: Infringement
Not to nitpick, but the reward for tested mettle is a medal made of metal. :)
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
The real...
The REAL Special Olympics.
By special people.
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Not to mention that they use javascript for page formatting.
with NoScript and their site being denied, that stupid page looks wide as 3 monitors next to each other. You have to scroll WAAAAY to the right to see some text
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
...
There's always www.bugmenot.com for the register & log in privacy issues.
(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
Add Your Comment