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Kodak Digital Innovations Enhance Experiences at Beijing 2008 Olympic Games


WEBWIRE

BEIJING, China.- Through advanced digital imaging technologies, Eastman Kodak Company will support attendees’ security, athletes’ health, and photojournalists’ images at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Kodak is the Official Imaging Sponsor of the Olympic Games, taking place Aug. 8-24.

In Beijing, Kodak’s most advanced imaging technologies will be employed to help create accreditation badges, provide onsite image-rich printing and publishing services, and support thousands of photojournalists capturing the action of the Olympic Games for news media worldwide. In addition, Kodak – through an arrangement with Carestream Health – is providing health imaging services to diagnose injuries to athletes.

“The Olympic Games captivate people everywhere and enable the world’s best athletes to showcase their talents,” said Antonio M. Perez, Kodak Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “Dating back to the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896, Kodak has been there to help capture and preserve the history, while also supporting the athletes. We’re proud to play that role again in Beijing.”

Kodak Image Center

The Kodak Image Center, a 22,000-square foot facility located in the Main Press Center, will serve the needs of more than 1,500 professional photographers and news agencies with traditional and digital photographic products and services. An estimated six million images will be acquired and digitized. By digitizing all the images, the Kodak Image Center will enable photographers and photo editors to share these memorable moments with editors, producers and audiences worldwide.

Showcasing Kodak’s Graphic Communications business, several digital printing technologies will be employed in an on-site production center. A Kodak NEXPRESS digital color production press will be installed to produce on-demand, full-color materials. Kodak will produce postcards, newsletters and poster-sized prints of key images for display purposes.

Kodak will print Opening Ceremony photos and other image related items, and will deliver imaging services throughout the games to the International Olympic Committee, the U.S. Olympic Committee and several other National Olympic Committees, and many of the Olympic Games Sponsors.

Medical imaging and communications at Olympic Games

Kodak is providing the Olympic Polyclinic with medical imaging and radiology technology through an agreement with Carestream Health, Inc., formerly Kodak’s Health Imaging Group. Radiologists will be able to capture digital x-ray images of injured athletes in seconds.

This technology also will enable the Polyclinic to obtain medical images and information electronically from some 20 Beijing-area hospitals, which are providing additional support services for the Olympic Games. As a result, radiologists at the Polyclinic will need do little more than click a mouse to review medical images of injured athletes captured at any of the interconnected facilities. This arrangement will help preclude two key things: having to move patient-athletes from one location to another for imaging and diagnosis, and having to hand-carry hardcopies of athletes’ medical images from point of origin to radiologists at the Polyclinic. Health providers, consequently, will be able to save valuable time, enabling faster patient treatment.

When the Olympic Games conclude, the equipment Kodak is providing the Polyclinic, through its agreement with Carestream Health, will remain in Beijing and will be transferred to local healthcare organizations by the Beijing Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games.

Security badges by Kodak

Kodak systems will produce more than 1.2 million security badges and credentials required for the Olympic athletes, officials, volunteers and sponsors. Kodak will provide equipment, materials and technical support. Everyone needing access to the Olympic venues must first submit an application.

The applications are scanned into a database utilizing a Kodak i620 Color Scanner. Special Kodak software allows the scanned image to be cropped and data added and displayed on a computer screen. The scanners are able to read up to 80 forms a minute and distribute the load to distributed workstations to process the data. Applicants can also have their image captured on-site by Kodak EasyShare Z812 digital cameras.

Once the badge is ready to be printed, it is output by the Kodak ML500 or Kodak 9810 thermal printer.

Kodak Showcase at Olympic Green

To help Olympic Games spectators capture and share their precious Olympic memories with friends and family all over the world, Eastman Kodak Company has set up the Kodak Experience in the Common Domain area of the Olympic Green in Beijing. Underscoring its industry leadership, Kodak will demonstrate an array of innovative digital products and services to expand the visitors’ ability to make, manage and move images. The Kodak Experience showcases elements of the Kodak strategy to create fresh links between taking, storing, organizing, sharing and printing images at home or in the retail environment.

In the Kodak Experience, Kodak demonstrates its newest generation of self-service kiosks that enable consumers to print photo-quality Kodak pictures in minutes from digital cameras or mobile phone cameras. The Kodak Picture Kiosk allows consumers to preview, select and print their pictures with specially designed Olympic-themed borders to further enhance their pictures and create lasting souvenirs of their Olympic experience.

Visitors to the Kodak Experience can create their own personalized souvenir photo using Kodak technology. Visitors can pose against an Olympic-themed backdrop and instantly have their picture printed, creating a truly unique souvenir of the Olympic Games.

Personalized and customized items such as photo books and other items can be ordered via a series of Kodak order stations.

Kodak also will demonstrate the newest EASYSHARE cameras and digital frames, including the KODAK EASYSHARE M2008, a limited edition Beijing Olympic Games-themed digital camera.

The Kodak Experience will be open daily during the Olympic Games from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., and is located in the Beijing Olympic Green common domain area alongside the Olympic Green metro station entrance.

Kodak Photo Shop in Athletes’ Village and Main Press Center

Kodak will provide two retail shops: one each in the International Zone of the Athletes’ Village located in Beijing and in Hong Kong. Kodak will provide Kodak Picture Kiosks for athletes to easily print, enhance and store images from their digital cameras and mobile phones. A full range of printing services will also be provided to athletes using digital, film or one-time use cameras.

Athletes will also find a broad variety of Kodak products, ranging from digital cameras, customizable photo output items, one-time-use cameras, batteries and memorabilia items. In this way, the Kodak Photo Shop in the Olympic Village gives participating athletes an opportunity to experience new ways of preserving and sharing their Olympic memories.

Kodak will also provide a retail shop featuring Kodak photo capture and printing products in the Main Press Center in Beijing, providing personal photo services for the media and press working at the Beijing Olympic Games.

“The Olympic Games have played a major role for Kodak historically, helping us to showcase our products, innovations and services,” said Perez. “We are culminating a long, fruitful relationship with the Olympic Movement and look forward to a successful program at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.”



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