Olympic viewing: NBC’s ratings drop, chaotic bike race

As a comparison, the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London primed the course for digital media’s Gold medal moment, with 15 million downloads of the official Olympics app, 150 million Olympic-related Tweets, and 100 million Facebook comments. Per Nielsen, the minimalist curtain-raiser notched a 13.9 household rating (i.e., the percentage of homes with TV sets tuned to the Olympics). That allows NBC to have 1,000 people working back in Stamford to present a seamless experience to viewers, whether it be prime time, late-night or daytime coverage. “Now NBC is going to have to start building an audience”.

Subscribers also get the NBC Sports Network (NBCSN), as well as Bravo, CNBC, MSNBC and U.S., all of which will carry Olympics broadcasts. This is the first Olympics in USA media history in which there is primetime Olympic coverage on channels other than the primary broadcast network. And as live events are taking place all over Rio, NBC says it has resulted in consumption for soccer and the Opening Ceremony.

It’s also far too early to declare Rio any sort of ratings disaster.

Live stream – The game will be carried online via NBC’s Olympics website, which is free for users who have a cable subscription. The network said this year also marks the first time that the broadcast network coverage, including primetime, has been streamed simultaneously on digital platforms. What’s more, while viewership was still down compared to London, it fell a more modest 20 percent and looks to be above tune-in for the comparable nights in both Athens and Sydney. It’s absolutely true audiences are doing much more streaming of live video now than even just four years ago, and that some cable and over-the-air viewers are now watching on their phones and laptops.

“It’s quite an operation there”, said Bell, noting that the London Games’ off-site commentators were based at the 30 Rock site in Manhattan.

NBC’s 5.9 primetime rating among adults 18-49 on Saturday night topped by 743 percent the other broadcast networks combined (0.7) – the largest advantage on record for any non-Super Bowl night. But in such a distracted age, those reports will be shorter than the four minutes they often ran in the past.