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More than 200 million viewers tune in for the first 11 days of Olympics

by jmaloni
Wed, Aug 8th 2012 09:45 am

London Olympics continues to pace ahead of Beijing and Athens in every measurement

Seven out of 10 Americans have watched the London 2012 Olympics

33.1 million average viewership and 18.5 household rating for the first 11 nights of the London Olympics is the most for any non-U.S. Summer Olympics in 36 years

Through 11 days, the London Olympics has reached 202.6 million total viewers across the Olympic Networks of NBCUniversal, averaged 33.1 million primetime viewers, and registered a household rating of 18.5/31, each posting significant gains compared to the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2004 Athens Olympics, the last European Olympics.

  • Through 11 days, 202.6 million people have watched the Olympics on the networks of NBCUniversal, 2.8 million more than Beijing (199.8) through the same time period. The 2008 Beijing Games hold the record for the most-watched event in U.S. television history with 215 million viewers. The 202.6 million total viewers is 14.4 million more than Athens through the same period (188.2 million).

•Through the first 11 nights of the London Olympics, NBC is averaging 33.1 million viewers, the most of any non-U.S. Summer Olympics since the 1976 Montreal Olympics. The 33.1 million is 3.5 million more viewers than Beijing (29.6 million), nearly 7 million more than Athens (26.2 million).

•The 11 night average household rating of 18.5/31 is the best for any non-U.S. Summer Olympics since the 1976 Montreal Olympics. The 18.5/31 is 8 percent higher than the first 11 nights from Beijing (17.2/30), and 17 percent ahead of the first 11 nights from Athens (15.8/28), the last European Summer Olympics.

•10 out of the 11 nights of the London Olympics have out-delivered Beijing among average viewers (P2+). In household ratings, the London Olympics have been equal to or greater than Beijing in 10 of 11 nights.

•Additionally, seven nights of the London Olympics have drawn more than 30 million viewers, equal to the 2008 Beijing Olympics (five) and 2004 Athens Olympics (two) combined.

PRIMETIME

Monday night's coverage, which featured the men's 400m final, women's 400m hurdle final and women's uneven bars final, drew 26.6 million viewers, 1 percent higher than the Beijing Olympics (26.4 million) and 2 percent higher than the comparable night at the Athens Olympics (26.0 million), the last European Olympics.

Monday night's primetime coverage on NBC (8 to 11:05 p.m.) earned a 15.8/25 national rating/share, flat with the comparable night in Beijing (15.8/26).

HIGHEST RATED BY TIME ZONE (THROUGH 11 DAYS):

Mountain

21.8/38

Pacific

20.1/38

Central

20.0/34

Eastern

19.0/32


11-NIGHT METERED MARKET AVERAGE:




1. Salt Lake City

26.6/47

2. Milwaukee

24.4/41

3. Kansas City

24.2/40

4. Denver

23.8/45

5. Columbus, OH

23.3/39

6. Norfolk

23.1/36

7. Indianapolis

22.7/38

8. San Diego

22.5/40

9. Richmond

22.1/35

10. West Palm Beach

21.9/36

11. Albuquerque-Santa Fe

21.5/36

12. Minneapolis-St. Paul

21.4/41

13. Austin, TX

21.3/39

14. Portland, OR

21.1/38

T15. Oklahoma City

21.0/43

T15. Sacramento

21.0/34

17. Nashville

20.9/39

18. Ft. Myers-Naples

20.8/32

19 Atlanta

20.8/37

20. St. Louis

20.6/34





NBCUniversal, presenting its 13th Olympics, the most by any U.S. media company, will make an unprecedented 5,535 hours of the 2012 London Olympics coverage available across NBC, NBC Sports Network, MSNBC, CNBC, Bravo, Telemundo, NBCOlympics.com, two specialty channels, and the first-ever 3D platform, an unprecedented level that surpasses the coverage of the 2008 Beijing Olympics by nearly 2,000 hours.

For the full schedule of NBCUniversal's Olympic coverage, visitNBCOlympics.com.

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