By Allison Kuhn
I have to get it off my chest – I am addicted to the Beijing Olympic Games. Ever since the lucky numbers (08/08/08) rolled around, I have been hooked on the games, watching NBC constantly. Now this addiction is one that some 20-million-plus American viewers share with me. In fact, this Olympic Games is projected to beat all previous Olympics in pure numbers of home viewers.
According to The Wall Street Journal, “NBC attracted an average of 24.1 million viewers for Saturday night's [8/9] prime-time broadcast, the most for the first night of competition since the Atlanta Games in 1996....” So why are people tuning into these games?
I can only speculate why I am so hooked and have several reasons that come top of mind. 1) The summer games will not come around for another four years, and I don’t want to miss them. 2) I enjoy watching competitive sports. 3) Will Michael Phelps win another gold medal?
But the real answer is likely the fact that I can watch the games at any time - that they are always available. Like the 2006 Winter Games, these games are available via streaming live video in addition to regular television coverage. NBC is projected to provide about 3,600 hours of coverage across its broadcast and cable networks and its Web site. Of that coverage, 75 percent will be live feeds.
I mean come on…how could I miss these games? You really need to check them out.
For more on the Olympic viewership, view the 8/11 WSJ article. (Online membership is required).
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