Sport and Cinema.com

The Olympic Games have traditionally been a ratings bonanza for American television networks and they still are. Correspondingly the astronomical rights fees have reflected broadcasters’ level of interest in securing them. But the times, they are a changin’.
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NBC, presenting a record sixth straight Olympics, will offer more than 800 hours of live coverage. That is more than the Winter Olympics of Turin and Salt Lake City combined.

Despite years of winning out over time zone differences, broadcast rivals and endless controversies, it looks like NBC will not have a podium finish in the compulsory figures competition.

The dismal economic environment with its prolonged recession combined with an extraordinary $820 million rights fee have experts projecting a loss in excess of $250 million for NBC.

Sure, the Olympics are worth more to NBC than the dollar amount they get in ad revenue (currently averaging $400-575K per 30-second spot for primetime Olympic programming) and with its halo effect of boosting its primetime slate and cable partner ratings, but it will be interesting to see how the dark economics affect the rights fee numbers on the upcoming bids for 2014 and 2016.

The likely new owners of NBC, the fiscally-conservative Comcast, may not be as easily drawn into a bidding war with players like CBS, Fox and ABC/ESPN for the U.S. rights.

Still, while networks are likely to be more cautious in their bidding, look for NBC to be right there with fledgling cable sports partners Versus and Universal Sports when the American broadcasters compete against each other before the IOC for the Winter Games in Sochi, Russia, and the Summer Games in Rio de Janiero, Brazil.