NBC earned a 16.3/27 national rating with 26.6 million viewers for Tuesday night's prime-time coverage of the Beijing Games, up 3.8 percent from a 15.7/26 for the comparable night in Athens in 2004. Through Monday, NBC is averaging a 17.1/29 national rating (29.3 million viewers) for 12 prime-time telecasts, up 8.2 percent from a 15.8/27 in Athens and marking the best rating through the second Tuesday of a non-U.S. Summer Games since an 18.1/34 for the 1992 Barcelona Games.