Currently, NBC and cable networks that are owned by NBC's parent company, Comcast, hold the English-language broadcast rights to the Olympic Games, with the current NBC contract with the IOC scheduled to end with the 2032 Summer Olympics at a host city to be determined by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) at a later date.
However, if NBC loses money on the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics this year, there is the outside possibility that NBC, should it get permission by the IOC to do so, may sell the 2020-2032 Olympic broadcast rights to another network. A number of factors are working against NBC this year, including:
Obviously, NBC has gone all out in an effort to try to make a profit off of the Pyeongchang Games and get high TV ratings, including successfully getting the Pyeongchang organizers to get the alpine skiing and figure skating events scheduled for the late morning and/or early afternoon hours in South Korea, which correspond to prime time of the previous calendar day and/or late night in the eastern half of the U.S., getting popular retired NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr. to do some feature segments for NBC's Olympic coverage (in effect, replacing legendary journalist Tom Brokaw in this role), and, most importantly, airing the promised live coverage of figure skating and alpine skiing live in the entire contiguous United States on over-the-air television.
However, if NBC's Pyeongchang 2018 coverage is a total flop, you may be asking yourself this question: would NBC sell the remainder of their Olympic contract to another network?
I highly doubt that NBC would actually give up the Olympic broadcast rights for a number of reasons. First, it's not clear if the IOC would approve of NBC giving up the broadcast rights to another network. Second, being the U.S. broadcast rights holder for the Olympics is regarded as a symbol of national pride. Third, NBC's parent company, Comcast, is deeply invested in the Olympic movement and the Paralympic movement. Fourth, NBC/Comcast could lose far more money selling the 2020-2032 Olympic rights than actually airing the Olympics until 2032, particularly since NBC paid an extremely large amount of money for the broadcast rights in the first place. Fifth, NBC's current contract includes the 2028 Summer Olympics, which is scheduled to be held in the United States (specifically, Los Angeles). I would say that there is a less than 0.5% chance that NBC would sell the 2020-2032 Olympic broadcast rights, and that's assuming that the IOC would allow NBC to do so in the first place, which I doubt that they would.
In the extremely unlikely event that NBC does decide that the Olympics are too much of a burden for their network beyond 2018 and NBC is allowed to and does sell the 2020-2032 Olympic broadcast rights to another network, there could be an interesting bidding war for the broadcast rights. I would guess that Fox, CBS, ABC/ESPN, and Turner Sports (i.e., the TBS/TNT/TruTV sports division), would all seriously consider bidding for the Olympic rights in the highly unlikely scenario that NBC were to sell the remainder of their contract, and there may be some bidders that you wouldn't expect being interested in broadcast rights to a major international sporting event. I would not attempt to name a frontrunner, as I could see any one of those four networks, or a joint bid between two or more of the four (such as CBS/Turner), winning the rights in the unlikely event NBC were to sell the Olympic broadcast rights after 2018. I will evaluate potential, although completely theoretical, bids for the 2020-2032 Olympic rights, should NBC give up the broadcast rights.
Fox Sports
A theoretical Fox bid for the balance of the NBC Olympic contract would probably be a serious one, given that Fox has recently moved to sell most of Fox's general entertainment properties, including FX and National Geographic Channel, to Disney (owners of ABC and ESPN), and Fox has taken an interest in international sporting events (most notably the FIFA World Cup broadcast rights, which Fox currently holds). However, Fox would be limited in its ability to air Olympic coverage for a couple of reasons. First, Fox wouldn't have as many available broadcast outlets for Olympic coverage as NBC/Comcast do because of the still-pending sale of FX, Nat Geo, etc. to Disney. Second, Fox and its affiliated cable networks, such as FS1 and FS2, air quite a bit of live sports programming that competes against the Olympics for TV viewership, particularly during the Winter Olympics. A Fox Olympic bid would probably result in a reduction of overall television Olympic coverage compared to NBC/Comcast, even if Fox News and Fox Business were used for supplemental coverage. Fox has no prior experience doing Olympic coverage.
CBS Sports/Turner Sports
If CBS and Time Warner were to bid for the Olympics, it would probably be in the form of a joint bid by their respective sports divisions, CBS Sports and Turner Sports. In Winter Olympic years, there would be some basketball-related logistical issues for both CBS (end of college basketball regular season) and Turner (NBA All-Star Game and regular season) in Winter Olympic years (NBC could take over CBS's golf commitments during the Olympics if NBC were to sell the 2020-2032 Olympic rights to CBS), although, aside from that, CBS and Turner would not have to clear as much time that would otherwise be devoted to non-Olympic sporting events for the Olympics as other potential bidders in the unlikely scenario that NBC were to sell the 2020-2032 Olympic broadcast rights. Also, a CBS Olympic bid in any form could result in Olympic coverage on more than one over-the-air network, as CBS is a co-owner of The CW, and the CW could be used for supplemental Olympic coverage; additionally, CBS has a cable sports network, CBS Sports Network, that could be used for supplemental coverage. Likewise, a Turner Olympic bid in any form would almost invariably result in Olympic coverage on TBS, TNT, and TruTV, and possibly CNN and HLN as well. A joint CBS/Turner bid would likely result in CBS being home of primary Olympic coverage, with The CW, CBS Sports Network, TBS, TNT, TruTV, HLN, and CNN being possible outlets for supplemental Olympic coverage. An interesting possibility in the event that NBC were to sell the balance of their Olympic contract to CBS and Time Warner is HBO (owned by Time Warner) and Showtime (owned by CBS) being used for Olympic coverage, possibly in the form of a special a la carte Olympic service for HBO and/or Showtime subscribers, which would probably fare better in the DVR era than NBC's 1992 Summer Olympic Triplecast experiment that was one of the biggest flops in American television history.
ABC/ESPN
ABC hasn't televised the Olympics in three decades, but, in the unlikely event that NBC sells the remainder of its Olympic contract after this year's Winter Olympics, ESPN, which produces ABC's sports programming, may make a serious bid for the remainder of the NBC contract. ABC and ESPN (particularly the latter) would have serious issues with broadcasting commitments for non-Olympic sporting events, particularly their basketball commitments during the Winter Olympics and ESPN's MLB baseball commitments during the Summer Olympics. Should the sale of FX, Nat Geo, etc. go through, that would provide ABC/ESPN with additional outlets for supplemental coverage, and, in the event that NBC were to sell the remainder of the Olympic broadcast rights to ABC and ESPN, the ABC/ESPN coverage would probably be structured similarly to the current format for Olympic coverage on NBC and its sister cable networks.
Discovery Communications
Believe it or not, Discovery Communications, which has never broadcast sporting events in the U.S. to my knowledge and is known in the U.S. for general entertainment cable networks like Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, and so on, holds the Olympic broadcast rights in many European countries, but not in the United States. Discovery Communications might be a wild card of sorts in the bidding war if NBC were to sell the 2020-2032 U.S. Olympic rights, and Discovery might turn around and buy time on an over-the-air network, possibly NBC, for an Olympic highlights package that would probably not include any live or first-run coverage. Discovery's U.S. cable networks, such as Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Science, Discovery Life, etc., have no current sports broadcasting commitments, and Discovery is attempting to acquire the Scripps cable networks like HGTV and DIY, which also currently lack sports broadcasting commitments and could be used for Olympic coverage as well. Discovery Communications acquiring the remainder of NBC's Olympic contract could allow for most of the Olympic coverage to be aired live in the U.S., regardless of the host city's time zone.
An internet-only broadcaster, such as Google/YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo, or Amazon
An interesting possibility is that NBC could, if it were to sell the rest of their Olympic contract following this year's Games, sell the Olympic broadcast rights to a non-television internet broadcaster, such as Google/YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo, or Amazon. One advantage of having an internet content provider like Google/YouTube, Amazon, etc. be the primary broadcast rights holder of the Olympics is that it would allow for full live coverage of every single Olympic event, regardless of the host city's time zone, in an a la carte format, if the internet content provider were to be willing to do so. However, a very major disadvantage of having an internet content provider be the primary broadcast rights holder is that the Olympics would not be able to get as many viewers than if there was traditional television coverage, which would likely result in the internet content provider buying time on an over-the-air network, possibly NBC, for an Olympic highlights package.
Long story short, I seriously doubt that NBC is getting out of its Olympic coverage tradition anytime before 2032, although, if NBC's Pyeongchang 2018 coverage is a total flop for NBC, there may be an extremely slight chance that NBC could give up the Olympic broadcast rights, but, for those of you who aren't fans of NBC's Olympic coverage, don't get your hopes up.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is the sixth of seven blog posts previewing the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang County, South Korea.
However, if NBC loses money on the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics this year, there is the outside possibility that NBC, should it get permission by the IOC to do so, may sell the 2020-2032 Olympic broadcast rights to another network. A number of factors are working against NBC this year, including:
- The 15-hour time difference between Korean Standard Time and U.S. Central Time, resulting in almost convoluted scheduling for NBC's Olympic coverage
- NBC's decision to devote a large portion, but not all, of its over-the-air Olympic coverage to two sports (figure skating and alpine skiing, even though the U.S. isn't expected to win any medals in figure skating)
- The Winter Olympics having to compete with Stephen Colbert's popular Late Show on CBS, the start of the NASCAR season (including the Daytona 500, which Fox holds the broadcast rights to), professional and collegiate basketball, and, for the first time in many years, the NHL regular season
- Declining Olympic TV ratings (there was a 45% drop in its 2016 Summer Olympics closing ceremony coverage compared to 2012, a trend NBC doesn't want to see spill over to the Winter Olympics overall)
- Increasingly vocal criticism of NBC's Olympic coverage in recent years, which has led to a tarnished image of NBC's Olympic coverage
- Recent scandals that have tarnished the image of the Olympic movement, such as the Russian doping scandal
Obviously, NBC has gone all out in an effort to try to make a profit off of the Pyeongchang Games and get high TV ratings, including successfully getting the Pyeongchang organizers to get the alpine skiing and figure skating events scheduled for the late morning and/or early afternoon hours in South Korea, which correspond to prime time of the previous calendar day and/or late night in the eastern half of the U.S., getting popular retired NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr. to do some feature segments for NBC's Olympic coverage (in effect, replacing legendary journalist Tom Brokaw in this role), and, most importantly, airing the promised live coverage of figure skating and alpine skiing live in the entire contiguous United States on over-the-air television.
However, if NBC's Pyeongchang 2018 coverage is a total flop, you may be asking yourself this question: would NBC sell the remainder of their Olympic contract to another network?
I highly doubt that NBC would actually give up the Olympic broadcast rights for a number of reasons. First, it's not clear if the IOC would approve of NBC giving up the broadcast rights to another network. Second, being the U.S. broadcast rights holder for the Olympics is regarded as a symbol of national pride. Third, NBC's parent company, Comcast, is deeply invested in the Olympic movement and the Paralympic movement. Fourth, NBC/Comcast could lose far more money selling the 2020-2032 Olympic rights than actually airing the Olympics until 2032, particularly since NBC paid an extremely large amount of money for the broadcast rights in the first place. Fifth, NBC's current contract includes the 2028 Summer Olympics, which is scheduled to be held in the United States (specifically, Los Angeles). I would say that there is a less than 0.5% chance that NBC would sell the 2020-2032 Olympic broadcast rights, and that's assuming that the IOC would allow NBC to do so in the first place, which I doubt that they would.
In the extremely unlikely event that NBC does decide that the Olympics are too much of a burden for their network beyond 2018 and NBC is allowed to and does sell the 2020-2032 Olympic broadcast rights to another network, there could be an interesting bidding war for the broadcast rights. I would guess that Fox, CBS, ABC/ESPN, and Turner Sports (i.e., the TBS/TNT/TruTV sports division), would all seriously consider bidding for the Olympic rights in the highly unlikely scenario that NBC were to sell the remainder of their contract, and there may be some bidders that you wouldn't expect being interested in broadcast rights to a major international sporting event. I would not attempt to name a frontrunner, as I could see any one of those four networks, or a joint bid between two or more of the four (such as CBS/Turner), winning the rights in the unlikely event NBC were to sell the Olympic broadcast rights after 2018. I will evaluate potential, although completely theoretical, bids for the 2020-2032 Olympic rights, should NBC give up the broadcast rights.
Fox Sports
A theoretical Fox bid for the balance of the NBC Olympic contract would probably be a serious one, given that Fox has recently moved to sell most of Fox's general entertainment properties, including FX and National Geographic Channel, to Disney (owners of ABC and ESPN), and Fox has taken an interest in international sporting events (most notably the FIFA World Cup broadcast rights, which Fox currently holds). However, Fox would be limited in its ability to air Olympic coverage for a couple of reasons. First, Fox wouldn't have as many available broadcast outlets for Olympic coverage as NBC/Comcast do because of the still-pending sale of FX, Nat Geo, etc. to Disney. Second, Fox and its affiliated cable networks, such as FS1 and FS2, air quite a bit of live sports programming that competes against the Olympics for TV viewership, particularly during the Winter Olympics. A Fox Olympic bid would probably result in a reduction of overall television Olympic coverage compared to NBC/Comcast, even if Fox News and Fox Business were used for supplemental coverage. Fox has no prior experience doing Olympic coverage.
CBS Sports/Turner Sports
If CBS and Time Warner were to bid for the Olympics, it would probably be in the form of a joint bid by their respective sports divisions, CBS Sports and Turner Sports. In Winter Olympic years, there would be some basketball-related logistical issues for both CBS (end of college basketball regular season) and Turner (NBA All-Star Game and regular season) in Winter Olympic years (NBC could take over CBS's golf commitments during the Olympics if NBC were to sell the 2020-2032 Olympic rights to CBS), although, aside from that, CBS and Turner would not have to clear as much time that would otherwise be devoted to non-Olympic sporting events for the Olympics as other potential bidders in the unlikely scenario that NBC were to sell the 2020-2032 Olympic broadcast rights. Also, a CBS Olympic bid in any form could result in Olympic coverage on more than one over-the-air network, as CBS is a co-owner of The CW, and the CW could be used for supplemental Olympic coverage; additionally, CBS has a cable sports network, CBS Sports Network, that could be used for supplemental coverage. Likewise, a Turner Olympic bid in any form would almost invariably result in Olympic coverage on TBS, TNT, and TruTV, and possibly CNN and HLN as well. A joint CBS/Turner bid would likely result in CBS being home of primary Olympic coverage, with The CW, CBS Sports Network, TBS, TNT, TruTV, HLN, and CNN being possible outlets for supplemental Olympic coverage. An interesting possibility in the event that NBC were to sell the balance of their Olympic contract to CBS and Time Warner is HBO (owned by Time Warner) and Showtime (owned by CBS) being used for Olympic coverage, possibly in the form of a special a la carte Olympic service for HBO and/or Showtime subscribers, which would probably fare better in the DVR era than NBC's 1992 Summer Olympic Triplecast experiment that was one of the biggest flops in American television history.
ABC/ESPN
ABC hasn't televised the Olympics in three decades, but, in the unlikely event that NBC sells the remainder of its Olympic contract after this year's Winter Olympics, ESPN, which produces ABC's sports programming, may make a serious bid for the remainder of the NBC contract. ABC and ESPN (particularly the latter) would have serious issues with broadcasting commitments for non-Olympic sporting events, particularly their basketball commitments during the Winter Olympics and ESPN's MLB baseball commitments during the Summer Olympics. Should the sale of FX, Nat Geo, etc. go through, that would provide ABC/ESPN with additional outlets for supplemental coverage, and, in the event that NBC were to sell the remainder of the Olympic broadcast rights to ABC and ESPN, the ABC/ESPN coverage would probably be structured similarly to the current format for Olympic coverage on NBC and its sister cable networks.
Discovery Communications
Believe it or not, Discovery Communications, which has never broadcast sporting events in the U.S. to my knowledge and is known in the U.S. for general entertainment cable networks like Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, and so on, holds the Olympic broadcast rights in many European countries, but not in the United States. Discovery Communications might be a wild card of sorts in the bidding war if NBC were to sell the 2020-2032 U.S. Olympic rights, and Discovery might turn around and buy time on an over-the-air network, possibly NBC, for an Olympic highlights package that would probably not include any live or first-run coverage. Discovery's U.S. cable networks, such as Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Science, Discovery Life, etc., have no current sports broadcasting commitments, and Discovery is attempting to acquire the Scripps cable networks like HGTV and DIY, which also currently lack sports broadcasting commitments and could be used for Olympic coverage as well. Discovery Communications acquiring the remainder of NBC's Olympic contract could allow for most of the Olympic coverage to be aired live in the U.S., regardless of the host city's time zone.
An internet-only broadcaster, such as Google/YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo, or Amazon
An interesting possibility is that NBC could, if it were to sell the rest of their Olympic contract following this year's Games, sell the Olympic broadcast rights to a non-television internet broadcaster, such as Google/YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo, or Amazon. One advantage of having an internet content provider like Google/YouTube, Amazon, etc. be the primary broadcast rights holder of the Olympics is that it would allow for full live coverage of every single Olympic event, regardless of the host city's time zone, in an a la carte format, if the internet content provider were to be willing to do so. However, a very major disadvantage of having an internet content provider be the primary broadcast rights holder is that the Olympics would not be able to get as many viewers than if there was traditional television coverage, which would likely result in the internet content provider buying time on an over-the-air network, possibly NBC, for an Olympic highlights package.
Long story short, I seriously doubt that NBC is getting out of its Olympic coverage tradition anytime before 2032, although, if NBC's Pyeongchang 2018 coverage is a total flop for NBC, there may be an extremely slight chance that NBC could give up the Olympic broadcast rights, but, for those of you who aren't fans of NBC's Olympic coverage, don't get your hopes up.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is the sixth of seven blog posts previewing the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang County, South Korea.
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