The NewsMarket announces the launch of its Beijing 2008 Channel. The new channel will provide journalists and bloggers with video content they can use for stories about the 2008 Games in Beijing, the participating athletes, venues and infrastructure projects as well as events involving sponsors. All video will be free for editorial use and available to order in broadcast-quality, streaming and embed in both English and Chinese.

Content will be provided by brands such as adidas, VISA, Samsung, Volkswagen and organizations such as the International Olympic Committee, amongst others. Available video includes:

• The Olympic torch lighting ceremony in Olympia, Greece
• Olympic Athletes visit the Great Wall and Olympic venues
• General views of Beijing including city skylines
• adidas' "Impossible is nothing" launch in China
• Construction of the Beijing Olympic stadium
• Soundbites with IOC President Dr. Jacques Rogge and others

Online video is immensely popular in China, the world's biggest Internet market in terms of users, which will end 2008 with an online population of 300 million. The NewsMarket has seen video requests from China double over the last 12 months with an increase of 22% in the first three months of 2008 alone.

Media organizations are expected to make a big splash around the Games, especially on their online properties. Sina.com, China's leading Internet portal, expects 10-20 million users to watch the Games online and NBC will host what is touted as the biggest online video event of all time on www.NBCOlympics.com with around 2,200 hours of live Olympics coverage as well as a host of on-demand video.

The Beijing 2008 Channel is part of The NewsMarket's overall outreach around China. The company launched a Chinese version of its site in late 2007 and is rolling out new services for both journalists and corporate sponsors of the Olympic Games including an Olympics package for marketers who want to publish video around the Games, SMS news alerts to journalists and access to on-the-ground video production partners in China.