• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

NBCU, IOC, USOC team for Olympic-themed TV network

mvcg66b3r

mvcg66b3r

NBCUniversal, the International Olympic Committee, and the United States Olympic Committee are teaming up to launch an Olympic Channel TV network in the second half of 2017. The network, which NBC says complements the digital channel of the same name that launched after the Rio Games earlier this year, will offer Olympic sports programming year-round.

The network will bear the tagline “Home of Team USA”. Mark Parkman will be its general manager.

The network will emphasize live events and will also include what the parties call “Olympic-themed original content”, such as original programs, documentaries and archival footage.
Click to expand...

http://www.broadcastingcable.com/ne...oc-usoc-team-olympic-themed-tv-network/161831
 
In a conference call Thursday, NBCU executives said AT&T and its DirecTV satellite-distribution unit had already agreed to carry the network, said Gary Zenkel, president of NBC Olympics. The company will talk with other distributors as contracts come up for renewal, he said, and had not begun talking to NBCU parent Comcast about carriage as a current deal to carry NBCU networks was still extant.
Click to expand...

https://variety.com/2016/tv/news/nbcuniversal-olympics-channel-ioc-1201943222/

This comes a day after DirecTV dropped the Esquire Network.
 
Wait an all Olympic tv network is only valuable as long as there's 2.5 weeks of Olympic events. I say that's gonna get drifted into NBC Sports Net 2 simply because of ratings reasons and yes Comcast would have to steal more talk show pundits from ESPN and Fox Sports net to make that channel viable if this Olympic network fails again.
 
TheBigA said:
Maybe but they really haven't succeeded with NBC Sports Net 1. Unless you REALLY love hockey.
Click to expand...

Or English soccer, which I believe attracts more eyeballs on NBCSN than the homegrown MLS does on ESPN -- or regular season baseball on FS1, for that matter. Compared to FS1 (some MMA, some baseball and lots of who-cares college football and basketball) and CBS Sports Network (club-level boxing, rodeos, college football and basketball that even fewer people care about), NBCSN has been a howling success.
 
How is this channel going to survive in odd number years? Or after the Olympics? This has to be TV’s equivalent of “All Christmas Radio” its only going to be big as long as its 30 days leading up to Christmas. After Christmas its over and a format flip comes into play to Hot AC and CHR on December 26th.

In the case of the Olympics people start paying attention to the training of Olympic Athletes 1 month before the games + 2.5 weeks the events are on. After that the NBC Olympics Channel will have to rename themselves as NBC Sports Net 2 to cover odd years and after the Olympics.
 
Keep in mind that NBC has aired a lot of preliminary Olympic competitions on their main network for many years. And a lot of these sports are very popular, even in non-Olympic years, like skating and gymnastics. So this is a way for NBC to spread some of that material around to its own dedicated channel. It's possible that this channel was included in their long terms rights fee, so it may not make a lot of money, but has a role in their overall sports strategy. Not to mention that it might build some interest in the Olympic movement beyond the few weeks every two years. Some people just love to watch sports on TV. This is for them.
 
I think this failed with NBCU Sports that was all Olympic sports channel I know it wasn't on cable where I lived. I think this will fail again I would watch Track & Field, Swimming, Bobsled, luge etc. If there was nothing else on.
 
I wonder if Charter is picking up this new channel as they and NBC just agreed on a new deal the article read on LA Times didn't say anything about it.
 
Im Amazed that the Olympic Channel was never mentioned in the 2018 Olympic games. As far as I know Xfinity the cable/internet provider in Northern California (SOlano County Specifically) there was lots of promotion for NBC Sports Net National to watch live 2018 Olympic games, Golden State Warriors Games over on NBC Sports Net Bay Area and NBC Sports app for the games.
 
RadioPatrol said:
Im Amazed that the Olympic Channel was never mentioned in the 2018 Olympic games. As far as I know Xfinity the cable/internet provider in Northern California (SOlano County Specifically) there was lots of promotion for NBC Sports Net National to watch live 2018 Olympic games, Golden State Warriors Games over on NBC Sports Net Bay Area and NBC Sports app for the games.
Click to expand...
I have to assume Olympic Channel was barred from live coverage due to contract terms. Why have a channel called Olympic Channel and not show live events on it. What better way to draw attention to the network.
 
Don CT said:
I have to assume Olympic Channel was barred from live coverage due to contract terms. Why have a channel called Olympic Channel and not show live events on it. What better way to draw attention to the network.
Click to expand...

The channel is a joke, just like Universal Sports was. I hoped that NBC would find more events to cover to avoid the endless replays of stale events that were staples of Universal Sports, but nothing seems to have changed. Not securing live Olympic events for the Olympic Channel was a mind-blowingly bad move. I wouldn't be surprised if the plug is pulled on this channel as well, hopefully before the run-up to the 2020 Summer Games begins and we have to watch the same old track meet or equestrian event four times a day for weeks on end.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom