NBCU will make its "Olympic-size digital video buffet available only to pay-TV customers," which is "no surprise, given the Peacock’s parent company, Comcast, has an interest in ensuring people keep paying for cable TV even as the Internet explodes with other video services," according to Todd Spangler of VARIETY. NBC will "churn out an unprecedented 4,500 hours of live event coverage from Rio available across digital devices -- a staggering avalanche across 34 sports." It also is the "first Olympic Games that viewers be available to watch live on connected TVs, including Apple TV, Google’s Chromecast, Roku and Amazon Fire devices, and for the first time, NBC broadcast network content including the primetime show will be streamed digitally." But cord-cutters "will be largely shut out." At NBCOlympics.com and via the NBC Sports app, users will be able to "stream 30 minutes of coverage for free on their first visit, and then must log in with credentials from a cable, satellite or telco TV provider." On subsequent visits, "only 5 minutes of live Olympics video will be available before viewers will be required to sign in." As a "complement to the live-streaming, NBC is launching a free new app, NBC Olympics: Rio News & Results." It will "provide the news and results, video highlights, TV listings, medal standings, dedicated sections for all 34 sports on the Rio program, bios of Team USA and international athletes, and other content" (VARIETY.com, 7/12).
SAME AS IT EVER WAS? VARIETY's Daniel Holloway noted NBC's primetime Olympic coverage "will in many ways look like it always has." It will "fixate on emotional stories of athletes." While there will be "new additions, such as broadcaster Mike Tirico, recently hired from ESPN, and some souped-up graphics," the "bones of the telecast will be the same as they were in the ’90s." The big changes "will be elsewhere," as NBC will be "the first to feature 4K and virtual-reality telecasts." NBCU President of Research & Media Development Alan Wurtzel will "look closely at social media." He said, "What we really want to understand is how people are using it. It’s my sense that social media is actually going to result in greater viewing of the mothership -- the primetime program." Holloway noted the Rio Games will be the "first in which NBCU pushes highlights through social media." While playing highlights on social media "seems like a no-brainer," consider "how much NBC pays for the Olympics." Giving away content "on platforms that are difficult to monetize carries risk." NBC Olympics President Gary Zenkel: "We feel quite bullish about this strategy" (VARIETY.com, 7/12).
