Hong Kong is facing a "staggering" HK$546M ($70M) broadcasting fee for the next two Summer Olympics in Tokyo and Paris, which "may kill any chance to watch the world's biggest sporting extravaganza on television," according to Chan Kin-wa of the SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST. The amount is more than double the $15M that TVB paid to broadcast the 2016 Rio Olympics, "if the sum is split over the two Games." A source who was involved in the fees negotiation for the 2016 Games said, "We were also scared when told the amount. This is just too much. We know there is keen competition among Hong Kong television networks but the amount is just unaffordable for any commercial station." Despite considerable advertisement revenue, TVB still made a loss of $15M on the 2016 Games "because of all the production costs." The source said, "There are still some 20 months to go before the Tokyo Games and those interested parties can sit down and discuss the price, but unless there is a big deduction on the amount, or someone like the now defunct LeSports from the mainland steps in, we don’t think there is any chance for the Hong Kong audience to watch the Games." The source added that Chinese state broadcaster CCTV paid $550M for the broadcasting rights for two Winter Olympics ('18 and '22) and two Summer Olympics ('20 and '24) (SCMP, 12/12).
