US network to pay additional $100m 'signing bonus' for promotion of games from 2015 to 2020 after secret talks with IOC
By the time the 2032 Olympics rolls around, most American athletes will be too young to remember a time when the event wasn’t broadcast on NBC.
The network will pay $7.5bn for exclusive rights to broadcast the Olympics from 2021 through 2032, according to an announcement by the International Olympic Committee on Wednesday. That’s six Olympics games in all. Under the deal, NBC also will pay out a $100m signing “bonus” for promotion of the games from 2015 to 2020.
NBC has had a lock on broadcasting the Olympics in the 21st century. The network’s last deal, signed in 2011, was for $4.4 billion to broadcast every Olympics from 2014 through 2020.
The 2012 London Olympics attracted a record audience and brought NBC an estimated $1bn in advertising revenue, but also copious criticism for broadcasting so many events on taped delay, in an age of live video streaming.
Thomas Bach, the IOC president, said in a statement that the deal "helps to ensure [the Games’] financial security in the long term". He added: "NBC's expertise in sports broadcasting, as well as their passion for the Olympic values, will mean we shall be able continue to offer first-class broadcast coverage of the Olympic Games to the widest possible American audience for many years to come.”
There was no open bidding process for the the deal this time around, and the arrangement was made after secret talks between the IOC and NBC.
The agreement covers the summer Olympics of 2024, 2028 and 2032 and the winter games of 2022, 2026 and 2030. It ranges across all platforms, including free television, subscription TV, internet and mobile rights.
Steve Burke, CEO of NBC Universal, called it "one of the most important days in the history" of the network. By 2032, NBC will have covered a total of 23 editions of the Olympics.
Brian Roberts, the chairman of Comast, NBC's parent company, said in a statement: "Our long-term commitment to and investment in the Olympic movement are a reflection of our belief in the future of broadcast television, as well as our confidence that our partners at the IOC will continue to deliver great Games and that the Olympics will remain the world’s premier sport event.”