TV Ratings: Summer Olympics Lowest Ever

The Tokyo Summer Olympic Games drew an average of 15.5 million prime-time TV viewers over their 17-day run, the company said, the lowest audience for the Summer Games since NBC started broadcasting them in 1988 and a 42% decline from the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016.

The Wall Street Journal reports NBCUniversal had expected a drop in viewership because of the challenges posed by Covid-19, with some athletes unable to participate and no spectators allowed in the stands. The Games were delayed a year.

“When you look at the numbers in general and the impact that Covid has had on sports, we were prepared for these numbers,” said NBC Sports Chairman Pete Bevacqua. “For better or worse, I really do believe the pandemic and postponement impacted these games.” Still, he said, NBC’s telecasts dominated the TV landscape night after night.

Mr. Bevacqua said the Tokyo Games “will be very, very profitable for NBCUniversal despite the challenges from the pandemic.” NBCUniversal said ad sales exceeded those of the 2016 Summer Games, which brought in about $1.2 billion in ad revenue.

As ratings faltered, the network began offering up additional commercial time to marketers to make up for the shortfall compared with the audience size NBC had promised—a standard industry practice. Some big advertisers are still owed “make-goods,” ad buyers said.

Some ad buyers said they might look for a discount on ads in the Super Bowl or a slot in the Beijing Winter Games, which are set to start on Feb. 4, to resolve contractual issues.

Mr. Bevacqua said more than 99% of advertisers were made whole, although there may be one or two exceptions that are still in negotiations.

NBC owns the U.S. media rights to the Olympics through 2032 and committed to paying around $1.1 billion for the Tokyo Games. That commitment steps up to around $1.27 billion beginning in 2022.