The International Olympic Committee has struck a partnership with Facebook that will allow users of the social media website’s Facebook Messenger service to interact with a ‘bot’ about live updates and highlights from the Olympic Games in Rio, according to the Mashable digital news service.
The report said that the deal represented the first official collaboration between the IOC and a social media company.
Dan Reed, Facebook's head of global sports partnerships, said that working with the IOC, the Games’ local organising committee and official broadcasters would “deliver exciting highlights, exclusive live video from Rio and behind-the-scenes content from Rio to our global communities on Facebook and Instagram.”
The report added that Facebook has linked up with more than 20 official Games broadcasters and National Olympic Committees, allowing programming and highlights to be available on dedicated pages on the social media platform.
Facebook’s Instagram picture-sharing platform is also hosting several channels dedicated to the Olympics within the ‘search and explore’ section of the application. The feeds feature behind-the-scenes video content from athletes in Rio.