The Olympic media dossier

2008: Beijing

8-24 August
Television
The total value of television rights is estimated to be $1,737m, 16 per cent more than the 2004 Games. In the US, NBC paid $897m for rights and expected to earn over $1bn in advertising sales, although the cost of production would almost certainly have wiped out the balance. The US broadcaster aired 3,600 hours across seven networks. This is 1,000 hours more than the total US television coverage of all Olympic Games since 1960.
        In the first full week of coverage, NBC achieved the largest margin in audience share over its rivals since A C Nielsen introduced 'people meters' in 1987, with an average audience (aged 18-49) in prime time larger than the next 12 networks combined. Its Saturday night peak audience on 16 August was the largest for any programme since 1990. Over the week NBC achieved a 27 per cent share and a reach (number of viewers watching at any time during the period) of 200m. Its average audience of 28.7m was more than five times larger than that of its nearest rival, CBS, which managed only 5.1m.
        Overall, NBC reached 214m viewers over the 17 days of the games, making it the most watched event in US television history and 11 per cent more than the previous highest viewing figure for the 1996 Games in Atlanta, Georgia.

China's state broadcaster paid $17.5m for the television rights but is reported to have earned as much as $400m from advertising.

These were the first games covered entirely in high definition television. However, much of the emphasis was on delivery, rather than production.
        All events were streamed online by broadcasters within their respective territories, eg: NBCOlympics.com in the USA.
        The BBC provided a mobile phone feed over some operators' networks. Big screens in 16 UK towns and cities carried television coverage live between 08:00 and 20:00 BST each day throughout the Games.
        The International Olympic Committee (IOC) set up an online channel on YouTube, screening highlights for the benefit of the 77 countries where rights have not been sold.
 

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