Petition grows against 2012 Olympic logo

Organisers say nearly 45,000 people have so far signed a petition demanding London's 2012 Olympics logo be scrapped, amid alarm that footage in the animated version triggered epileptic fits.

The online petition was launched after the jagged, multi-coloured emblem was launched earlier this week by former Olympic athletics champion Lord Sebastian Coe, chairman of the London 2012 organising committee.

The committee has rebuffed criticism that the logo, which cost 400,000 pounds ($A953,000) to design, is "puerile" and "hideous," saying it is meant to be "edgy" and that people will get used to it.

But detractors have continued to flood websites with their own alternative proposals.

By Wednesday afternoon some 43,400 people had signed a "Change the London 2012 Logo" petition, according to an online tally.

The row took another twist on Tuesday when claims emerged that flashing lights in the initial animated version of the logo had triggered epileptic fits in many people.

London Mayor Ken Livingstone says he would not pay the company which produced the video.

"I wouldn't pay them a penny," he said.

"Who would go to a firm like that again to ask them to do that work? I mean, this is a pretty basic thing."

Seizure danger

Support group Epilepsy Action issued a statement saying numerous people had reported seizures as a result of watching the video.

"The animated footage could affect the 23,000 people in the UK who have photosensitive epilepsy and may also affect other people who do not yet know that they are photosensitive," it said.

"We are concerned that the animated footage will not just be shown in the UK, where half a million people in the population have epilepsy, but it will also be shown all over the world.

"People can strive for years to gain seizure control and it is important that nothing puts this at risk."

Coe, the former 800 metres and 1,500 metres world record holder who won gold in the 1,500 metres at the 1980 and 1984 Olympics, has defended the logo designed by the Wolff Olins branding agency.

"It won't be to be everybody's taste immediately, but it's a brand that we genuinely believe can be hard working ... and reach out and engage young people, which is our challenge over the next five years," he said.

"It's not a logo, it's a brand that will take us forward for the next five years."

Souce, AFP and ABC