If you are one of the many who are attempting to purchase tickets for the 2012 London Olympics, then you should take a close look at the terms and conditions. Although it remains far from certain, there is a strong possibility that you will not be able to take along your mobile phone.
It is not just your iPhone 4 and other smartphones that face a ban. It seems that the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) will allow little more than the clothes we stand up in. We can understand why they might wish to ban alcoholic drinks, but they intend to also ban all non-alcoholic beverages and food.
Any other liquid such as sunscreens will not be allowed if they are in containers of greater than 100ml capacity (where do you get 100 ml containers of sun block?). Other items in the forbidden list are all musical instruments, whistles, horns, drums and rattles, thermos flasks (presumably even if smaller than 100ml) or anything else that might be considered to be disruptive.
This is somewhat of a shock to the plans to make the 2012 Olympics an event in which the mobile phone is a key element. The BBC has made detailed plans to broadcast information and live coverage of events directly to mobile phones, and networks are cooperating to install additional facilities that will prevent over-worked mobile phone networks from crashing.
Of course we see that it is important to guarantee the security of spectators, athletes and organisers, but the mobile phone is now such a major part of everyday life, that many people will feel banning it is just one step too far.
The latest message from the LOCOG is that it is too soon to worry as they have not yet come to any firm decision and there remains the possibility that mobile phones will escape the ban; however if the temperatures soar, then the ban on taking non-alcoholic drinks along (which no doubt includes water) means that, unless we are willing to pay inflated prices for 99 ml shots of liquid, we could all face dehydration too. For more information visit dialaphone.co.uk