NBCOlympics.com to stream 2,200 hours live

Cory Bergman August 7th, 2007

Calling it “the most ambitious single media project in history,” NBC Universal announced its plans for the 2008 Summer Olympics. Over the 17 days of Games, NBC Universal properties will air 3,600 hours of coverage — and in a big first, NBCOlympics.com will stream 2,200 hours of live coverage with 6,600 hours ultimately available on demand. Wow, that’s a lot of online video.

It goes without saying that such blanket online coverage raises some interesting issues/questions at the affiliate level, but kudos to NBCU for blowing it out online. Press release below with more details…

PRESS RELEASE — NBC Universal will present more than 3,600 hours of coverage of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the most ambitious single media project in history and more than the combined total of every Summer Olympics ever televised in the United States. The Beijing Olympic Games will begin one year from tomorrow, August 8, 2008, with unprecedented around-the-clock coverage and, for the first-time ever in the U.S., live streaming Olympic broadband video coverage. The announcement was made today from Beijing by Dick Ebersol, Chairman, NBC Universal Sports & Olympics on the eve of the celebration marking one year to the Beijing Olympic Games.

Following are highlights of NBC Universal’s planned Beijing Olympics coverage:

3,600 HOURS:
Over the 17 days of the Beijing Games (Aug. 8-24, 2008), NBC Universal will present more than 3,600 hours of coverage highlighted by NBC in primetime which will feature live swimming, gymnastics and beach volleyball, despite the 12-hour time difference from the U.S.’s eastern time zone to Beijing.

SURPASSES COMBINED TOTAL OF ALL PREVIOUS SUMMER OLYMPICS:
The 3,600 hours is 1,000 hours more than the total coverage for every televised Summer Olympics in U.S. history. Note: Dating back nearly 50 years to CBS in Rome in 1960 (20 total hours) through NBC in Athens in 2004 (1,210 total hours), the 12 Summer Olympic Games broadcasts have totaled 2,562 hours.

212 HOURS A DAY… OR 8 DAYS A DAY:
NBC Universal’s coverage will average nearly 212 hours per day for 17 days – more than eight days of coverage during every single day of the Olympics.

TRIPLES ATHENS 2004… 20-TIMES ATLANTA 1996:
The more than 3,600 total hours of coverage from Beijing triples the previous record of 1,210 total hours of coverage on NBC from Athens in 2004, is 20 times more than the 171 total hours on NBC from Atlanta in 1996 and 180 times greater than the 20 total hours for the inaugural U.S. Olympic broadcast on CBS from Rome in 1960.

ON-AIR, ONLINE, ON-DEMAND & ON-THE-GO:
ON-AIR: NBC Universal’s NBC, USA, MSNBC and CNBC will all provide coverage from Beijing with high definition coverage on NBC’s HD affiliates, USA HD and Universal HD. Spanish-language Olympic coverage will be seen on NBC Universal’s Telemundo.

ONLINE: Olympic fans will have access to approximately 2,200 total hours of live streaming Olympic broadband video coverage on NBCOlympics.com.

ON-DEMAND: In addition to the 3,600 total hours of coverage mentioned above, NBCOlympics.com also will feature approximately 3,000 hours of Highlights, Rewinds and Encores.

ON-THE-GO: On-the-Go (wireless) coverage will be detailed in the coming months.