via press release:
| NBC’S FIRST NIGHT OF OLYMPIC COMPETITION IS MOST-WATCHED SUMMER OLYMPICS OPENING NIGHT ON RECORD | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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28.7 Million Average Viewers Tops First Night from Atlanta by More Than 2 Million Viewers; Nearly 5 Million More than Beijing; and Nearly 9 Million More than Athens, the Last European Olympics NBC’s two-day primetime average of 35.6 million viewers is the best start to a Summer Olympics on record 15.8/29 National rating for First Night of Competition is 14% Higher than Beijing and 34% Higher than Athens; Best for Any Non-U.S. Summer Olympics Ever NBC’s Daytime and Late Night Rating and Viewership Enjoy Significant Gains |
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| LONDON – July 29, 2012 – The first night of competition from the London Olympics (8:30-11:28 p.m. ET/PT) is the MOST-WATCHED for a Summer Games opening night on record, with 28.7 million average viewers, topping the first night of competition from the 1996 Atlanta Games by more than two million viewers (26.3 million). Last night’s viewership is nearly five million more than the first night of the 2008 Beijing Olympics (24.0 million), and nearly nine million more than the first night of the 2004 Athens Olympics (19.8 million), the last European Olympics.
NBC’s two-day primetime average of 35.6 million viewers is the best start to a Summer Olympics on record, more than two million more than Atlanta (33.3 million), and more than six million more viewers than Beijing (29.5 million). Last night’s competition on NBC, which featured the first duel between Ryan Lochte and Michael Phelps, earned a 15.8/29 national rating/share, the best for a non-U.S. Summer Olympics opening night in 36 years since Montreal Olympics. The rating is 14 percent higher than the first night of the Beijing Olympics (13.9/27), which featured live coverage of Phelps’ first of his eight gold medals.
AVERAGE VIEWERS FOR 1st NIGHT OF COMPETITION (ALL SUMMER GAMES ON RECORD):
NBC’S DAYTIME AND LATE NIGHT VIEWERSHIP SOARS:
TOP 20 METERED MARKETS FOR LAST NIGHT:
NBCUniversal, presenting its 13th Olympics, the most by any U.S. media company, will make an unprecedented 5,535 hours of the 2012 London Olympics coverage available across NBC, NBC Sports Network, MSNBC, CNBC, Bravo, Telemundo, NBCOlympics.com, two specialty channels, and the first-ever 3D platform, an unprecedented level that surpasses the coverage of the 2008 Beijing Olympics by nearly 2,000 hours. --NBC OLYMPICS-- |
and tonight 4×100 NBC will be 3rd network this season.
NBC will use this news to justify its overly-produced time-delayed Olympics broadcasts of annoyingly-edited packages designed to keep viewers in front of their TVs waiting to see the events they want from beginning to end.
I was shocked they showed the swim events in order as they occurred. I expected the Phelps/Lochte letdown race (which was first live) to be shown last on NBC between 11 and midnight.
Nbc needs to quit patting themselves on the back so much, and start showing what the viewers want to see in a timely manner, without their edited version.
They’re spending more time blocking out people’s negative opinions.
Terrible sports coverage. We should be ashamed. In England, where my husband came from, there are multiple channels covering all events, in their entirety, with very little commentary and no embarrassing rooting. I wonder if people realize how much they are missing. Also, notice, there is zero, zilch, nada coverage of events or whole sports in which there is little US presence. And those commentators! They never, never shut up.
I’m trying to figure out what the top 20 cities list means? Does it really mean that in America’s population centers (ie, NY, LA, Chicago, Philadelphia, Houston) people aren’t as interested?
Nadine: ratings are percentages, so on a PERCENTAGE basis of total homes, yes. But on a total homes basis, no. i.e., <18% of New York homes still = a number much bigger than 23% of Salt Lake City homes.
Obviously everyone here is unaware that every event can be seen LIVE on NBC’s Olympics site (and iPad/phone apps) and many events are live on the NBC networks as well.
You’re in the 21st century act like it, watch it online if you have such a big problem with tape delays.
many here are just NBC haters who seems to always find fault on NBC. Aren’t they aware that NBC has already provided platforms for them to watch the games LIVE?
Of course, NBC had to delay to place the coverage on primetime! Duh? if they won’t delay it…then the games will be on afternoon? So what they’ll gonna show on primetime?
NBC haters!!!
You’re in the 21st century act like it, watch it online if you have such a big problem with tape delays.
Well said.
Me I don’t have a problem with delays; I keep up with ESPN. I have a problem with the stingy spotty nature of all the coverage andd the awful chatter, chatter, chatter.
You’re in the 21st century act like it, watch it online if you have such a big problem with tape delays.
So true. I am so tired about the whinging about not seeing the events live.
@Tony You get a 10. I’m watching a spirited Czech vs Mauritius women’s beach volleyball match as I type this. You won’t see that on NBC tonight.
Curious that New York, LA and Chicago aren’t among the top-20 markets in terms of ratings. Also, although 1996 has the 2nd largest audience after this year’s Olympics the US population back then was about 50 million less than what it is today. If NBC ranked by rating the ’96 Games would probably be on top.
PLEASE! Get rid of your “Butch” for late night coverage.