Segways Securing Olympics

Please indulge me in a somewhat off-topic post that I think will nevertheless be interesting to the business thinkers who come to this site each day. Last weekend I was shocked to come across the photo above in a BusinessWeek article about U.S. companies that are enjoying a taste of the $6.5 billion China is spending just on security for this month’s Olympic Games.

I was personally shocked by this image of paramilitary forces in slick black Segways “gliding” down a training ground with aimed firearms in hand. I went through a mental reassessment of this brand, which is still establishing itself in my mind. On one hand, I felt that this was a big step away from how Segway seems to position itself as a forward-thinking fun brand. A look at its official website and community portal confirm that this is an optimistic, positive company. Selling military equipment to a country with human rights issues seems to run counter to what Segway aims to stand for.

On the other hand, use of Segways for critical military work sends a message that the product is reliable and useful. If police in your city and the Chinese government use Segways, then they must be good enough for us to invest in this pricey and unusual form of transportation. It also brings a cool factor to the brand, suggesting that Segway is not all fun and games, but rather a serious vehicle.

But I’m not a Segway owner, and I wanted to get perspective from some of the brand’s biggest fans. So I took some time to ask for the opinions of members of Segway Chat, “the world’s oldest and largest independent Segway community.” People in these groups are usually full of opinions. After a few days I gathered only 6 responses among 143 viewers (holding fairly close to the 1/10/89 rule that in online communities 1% produce content, 10% comment, and 89% read). Here’s what the community said:

• “Well, remembering Tiananmen Square, and the Cultural Revolution, there’s more evil to China’s police activities than makes me comfortable, but I’m sure there’s good mixed in there as well.”
• “My own feeling about this is that it’s normal. Segway has marketed to security forces since the beginning. It is a tool and it can and should be used in any way that is effective in fighting crime and ensuring safety. You can attach politics to it if you want, but any other country or security forces, including our own, would be smart to develop tactics to take advantage of the Segway abilities.”
• “I suppose it’s supposed to look scary, and I guess it sort of does, but if *I* were one of those guys, the first thing I’d do is get OFF, lay the Segway down, and get behind it. And hope the Saphion batteries are as safe as they claim… or stick on a skidplate as armor.”

So some pretty interesting reactions, but clearly this was not too polarizing to serious Segway owners.

What do you think? Has your brand ever experienced military-related news coverage like this?