NBC Setting Olympics Ratings Records (30% above network expectations)

Re: Top 10 Patriotic Sports Towns (NBC Ratings up 8% from live coverage)

Technology has made NBC's policy dumber than ever. They're not charging for the stream. So why not show it live on cable and then rebroadcast in prime time? Anybody who wants to knows how to get this live and does. They're not gaining viewer one with this policy, but it makes them feel better, because it's a way for a declining company's executives to feel like they're doing something successful. The ratings increase over 2008 is solely due to the time shift effects involved. That's it. They will be higher still for Rio, again, just because of time.

 

Re: Top 10 Patriotic Sports Towns (NBC Ratings up 8% from live coverage)

My guess is they're extracting comparable money from the cable companies over the live streaming that they were from the general public via the Triplecast.

 

Re: Top 10 Patriotic Sports Towns (NBC Ratings up 8% from live coverage)

For the record: Gold medal men's hoops game from Beijing was on live on the West Coast. Tipped off at 11:30 p.m., just about the time I had to push the button, dammit, dammit, dammit!

 

Re: Top 10 Patriotic Sports Towns (NBC Ratings up 8% from live coverage)

I wonder what effect Kabletown buying NBC had on this setup. Seems likely that they'd benefit more from still pushing people to the TVs.

I also think you're going to see more of this kind of thing from networks in the future, trying to push the genie back in the bottle -- maybe not on live sports but on a host of issues like DVR/OnDemand viewing, free secondary sites and the like. The pushback on the Dish commercial-free DVR was startling. Not unlike newspapers, they've been told everything would be fine if they just gave their product away. But networks, unlike newspapers, have a chance to re-direct that river.

 

Re: Top 10 Patriotic Sports Towns (NBC Ratings up 8% from live coverage)

This thread reminds me of the Louis CK bit about how everything's amazing and no one's satisfied. "The Wi-Fi on this flight is too slow!"

NBC is woefully out of touch? NBC is old media in a new media world?

Every single event is available live on NBC's website. For free.

I can watch every single event live on my iPad using the NBC Olympics app. For free.

NBC has multiple channels broadcasting events live throughout the day -- and largely focusing on the events, not the sob-story features.

But to see a few of the events on the TV of your choice you may have to wait a few hours? The bastards!

NBC will make more money on its prime-time coverage than it will with any other daypart, and it's not close. With the money NBC spends to acquire the rights and broadcast the games it has to steer an audience to primetime. There's no way around it.

The fact that I can watch any event live on my iPad is freakin' amazing. I watched France vs. Great Britain in Team Handball this afternoon. I can watch live gymnastics coverage that focuses on individual events. If I want to watch the live pommel horse all day, I can do it.

There are aspects of NBC's coverage that bug me. I think Matt Lauer, Meredith Viera and Bob Costas rendered the opening ceremony nearly unwatchable. But overall? The viewing options are unbelievably good.

 

Re: Top 10 Patriotic Sports Towns (NBC Ratings up 8% from live coverage)

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ He speaketh the truth.

Someone more technologically advanced, tell me: If you have Internet-enabled TV or a Roku, can your TV in effect be your computer monitor?

 

Re: Top 10 Patriotic Sports Towns (NBC Ratings up 8% from live coverage)

Holy shit, are you serious with this?

Yes, I'll clarify, I can watch the pommel horse LIVE as long as there is gymnastics going on. The same with every single other competition within gymnastics. But you're right, not all of them are available for immediate on-demand replay. The bastards!

I've had no buffering issue on the iPad. It's been amazingly smooth.

They can't double-dip on the advertising profits. To air the major events during the day will cannibalize the evening viewership. If it wouldn't, they wouldn't do it that way -- and prime time is where the money is. It's not in the daytime events. For an event that's absolutely appointment TV, like a men's basketball final, they can probably make it work. The men's 400 IM? Not a chance.

The viewing options now are so much better, by such a wide margin, than ever before... but you can't watch absolutely everything you want on your TV of choice at the exact moment you choose. Sorry.

 

Re: Top 10 Patriotic Sports Towns (NBC Ratings up 8% from live coverage)

MileHigh, your zeal on this reminds me a bit of the people who got newspapers to give their product away 10-15 years ago, under that oft-quoted saying "information wants to be free." And your claim about their advertising double-dip sounds like the leap of faith newspapers were asked to take about "eyeballs."

I have no problem with the folks trying to make their money. And I have plenty of options to see the event if it's worth my effort.

 

Re: Top 10 Patriotic Sports Towns (NBC Ratings up 8% from live coverage)

I've had nothing but problems. The feed buffered in and out when I was trying to watch the USWNT play Wednesday morning on my iPhone. And I missed the entire last split and a half of the 400 IM final yesterday on my computer because I got the Spinning Pinwheel of Death using NBColympics.com on my laptop.

Online viewing of these Olympics has been a disaster for me so far. It's early, of course. But so far, nothing but problems.