It’s official: Summer Olympics most-watched TV event of all time

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My question: Who are the people who didn’t watch the Olympics?

From NBC:

LONDON – August 13, 2012 – 219.4 million Americans watched the London Olympics on the networks of NBCUniversal, setting the record as the most-watched event in U.S. television history, surpassing the 2008 Beijing Olympics (215 million), according to data available today from The Nielsen Company.

NBCUniversal, presented its 13th Olympics, the most by any U.S. media company, with an unprecedented 5,535 hours of the 2012 London Olympics coverage 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.

 

  • 31.0 million average viewership for Closing Ceremony is most-watched for a non-U.S. Summer Olympics in 36 Years – topped Beijing by 12% and Athens by 58%;
  • NBC averaged 31.1 million viewers over 17 nights in primetime, the most-watched non-U.S. Summer Olympics since the 1976 Montreal Olympics – topped Beijing by 12% and Athens by 26%;
  • The 17.5/30 national household rating over 17 nights in primetime ties the 1988 Seoul Olympics as the highest-rated non-U.S. Summer Olympics since the 1976 Montreal Olympics;
  • NBC Olympics Digital set multiple records with video streams, engagement time and page views – nearly 2 billion page views and 159 million video streams;
  • NBC Sports Network had its most-watched event ever and its six most-watched days ever;
  • Halo effect led to record ratings and significant growth for NBC News’ TODAY and “Nightly News with Brian Williams”;
  • London Olympics lifts ratings and viewership for NBC’s affiliated stations and NBC Owned Television Stations;
  • Telemundo more than doubled its viewership from the 2008 Beijing Olympics;
  • Salt Lake City is top Olympic metered market for 7th straight Olympics;
  • Mountain Time Zone leads the way, followed by Pacific, Central and Eastern.

 

STEVE BURKE: CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, NBCUNIVERSAL:

“The London Olympics was a wonderful 17 days for NBCUniversal, exceeding all our expectations in viewership, digital consumption and revenue. Every part of our company contributed to our success, once again showing how effective we can be when we all get together to support a large project. This was the first Olympic Games for Comcast and the new NBCUniversal, and the first in history in which every minute of every event was available live. We are proud to have been part of the last two weeks, and we couldn’t have asked for a better start to our long run of Olympic Games through 2020.”

MARK LAZARUS: CHAIRMAN, NBC SPORTS GROUP:

“For 17 days, NBCUniversal has surrounded the American viewer with the London Olympics, which have now become the most-watched event in U.S. television history. There are thousands of dedicated and talented people in London and New York who take great pride in being part of these historic Games and this television milestone.”