For NBC, Paris Olympics delivered gold
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Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
If there were medals for the overall level of public interest in the Olympic games, Paris 2024 would be a strong contender for the podium.
Why it matters: Combined TV and streaming viewership across live and recorded highlights from the roughly 17 days of competition have exceeded NBC's expectations at a time when traditional broadcasts continue to be upended by the dynamics of digital media.
Zoom in: Few events are as important to the Comcast-owned media company as the Olympics, but recent Games were beset by record-low ratings and bad optics, per Axios Pro's Tim Baysinger.
- More importantly, its streaming service Peacock, which lags behind other major streaming platforms with 33 million paid subscribers, is finally getting the sizable Olympics push that NBC envisioned when it launched the platform in 2020.
One decision in particular paid dividends: NBC streamed the hottest events from Paris live instead of holding them back until prime time in the U.S., six hours behind.
- The success of that strategy translated plainly: At least eight of Peacock's 10 most-streamed days of all time have been from the Olympics, Brian Stelter reported.
- Specifically, the U.S. women's gymnastics team, men's basketball final and women's national soccer team win were among the most-watched.
Caveat: NBC's decision to account for both the afternoon/evening audiences in its prime time metric has also helped bolster that ratings number when stacked against past years.
The intrigue: Social media played a bigger role this year in driving viewership.
- Looser rules about what videos could be shared online revealed more personalities and storylines to the public, the New York Times noted.
The big picture: "NBC may have been fortunate that the Paris Olympics came along at a time when a deeply politically divided country could use a break," Stephen Battaglio wrote in the LA Times.
What we're watching: The Paris games will yield the largest ad revenue for any TV event in history, NBC told the Times.
- Los Angeles — arguably the entertainment and content capital of the world — plays host to the next summer games, setting up even higher expectations for engagement.
