Live From Paris 2024: NBC Olympics Mark Lazarus, Rick Cordella and Molly Solomon on the Success of the Paris Games Lazarus says Billion Dollar Lab drives ad sales but also lays foundation for future live events By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Friday, August 2, 2024 - 4:27 am
Print This Story
The past three Olympic Games, in South Korea, Japan, and China, challenged the NBC Olympics team (and viewers) with vast time zone differences and, of course, the Covid pandemic. So nearly everyone was waiting to see how the Paris Games would do not only ratings wise but in terms of an actual event with crowds at full capacity and one of the world's most beautiful cities as a backdrop.
On Thursday afternoon in Paris key NBC executives involved with the Games, Mark Lazarus, Chairman NBCUniversal Media Group; Rick Cordella, President, NBC Sports, and Molly Solomon, Executive Producer and President of NBC Olympics Production, held a media call to discuss all of those things and more with the media.
Lazarus said that the enthusiasm in Paris for the Olympics is reminiscent of the London 2012 Games and that with average viewership of 34 million viewers in the U.S. (up 79% from the Tokyo Games in 2021) NBC is off to a great start on TV and streaming.
The view from the NBC Olympics Primetime and Today Show sets is about as iconic as a view can get.
Driving that success was targeted marketing and promotion of the athletes, Paris, and Team USA.
As a result, NBC stations have been delivering big numbers for all the athletic competition, as well as their local news and all of their shoulder programming, he said.
And the streaming side has also found success.
At this point, we've got more than eight billion streaming minutes and counting with still plenty of time to continue to grow big numbers on that, he said. And speaking of billions, our ad sales has been very strong [and this is] our biggest ad sales total ever.
With the athletic competitions taking place six hours ahead of the East Coast back home the effort around Primetime coverage is unique and Lazarus credits the team for creating two shows at once: following the live action during the day and then creating the primetime show which airs in the U.S. when the city of lights is asleep and resting up for the next day.
It's a really complex piece of work, says Lazarus.
Explains Solomon: Every time you have an Olympics, you get a new time zone, a new puzzle, really, to put together. And we've gone back in time to remind ourselves that America, it doesn't matter if they know the results. They want to know the stories of the athletes and how it played out.
And so that's why the prime time shows, I think, are resonating. You can watch live in the afternoon if you're a sports fan and want a quick hit of it. But when you come back in prime time, you get to see how it all happens.
Mark Lazarus says the dedicated NBC Olympics production team, nearly 3,000 people strong, is driving the success NBC is finding with viewers and advertisers.
The top storyline for U.S. viewers has, clearly, been the performance of the American women's gymnastics team and women's all-around gold medalist Simone Biles. And the way NBC Olympics produced the gymnastics coverage is a perfect example of the live/not-live workflow. The gymnastics events end around 8 pm in Paris which is 2 pm on the East Coast, giving the team there some time to re-package it in the most compelling way possible.
If you've ever watched gymnastics live, it's pretty darn complex and complicated, says Solomon. But we're able to take a few hours to really lay out how it happened and the stories of the athletes [for primetime].
Cordella said Solomon and the team have done a fabulous job of taking prime time and doing something different with it that get viewers to tune in even if they know the results.
Historically the fear has been if results were known people would tune out and go somewhere else, says Cordella. But when you add the entertainment level that we've added to the prime-time show, we're seeing people come back and see it in a different light. We added context around big events, so if you saw Simone and the team win the medal on Tuesday, you're still happy to come back in the evening to see it again.
The Social Media Effect
There was a time, not too long ago, when the perception was that social media and its need for short-form content like highlights would negatively impact TV ratings, especially for events that have already taken place. But Cordella says products like Gold Zone on Peacock, Watch with Alex Cooper, and NBC's collaborations with YouTube and social media platform stars shows a different approach. The goal was to make the 7,000 hours of content sign in a new way on social media.
Molly Solomon has led the effort to turn the NBC Olympics Primetime programming slate more compelling for viewers who may already know the results of the competitions they are watching.
Added Solomon: I think we've very much leaned into the fact that if things are happening on social and you have unique content on social, it all flows through to promoting the Olympics and what's happening. And we really tried to integrate social into our broadcast as well because that's how we all experience media.
She pointed to coverage of French swimmer Leon Marchand's double gold on Wednesday night as an example of how the NBC Olympics team is using social media.
Our creators culled all of the reactions across Paris, and that wasn't possible without doubling down on creators and giving access to what's happening in France on social media, she said. I think it's really paid off in our broadcast presentation.
Lazarus said that social media and streaming is about distilling down th
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
12/05/2026
Beyond the Hype: A Strategic Post-Hoc Analysis of NAB 2026 If NAB Show 2026 had an underlying theme, it was a quiet, industry-wide pivot from the high-energy sp...
12/05/2026
Guntermann and Drunck (G&D), a Panoptec Technologies Group company, and CT Square, led by Chandresh Shah, have announced a joint venture to distribute G&D and V...
12/05/2026
With 30 days until the start of the FIFA World Cup 2026, Telemundo, the exclusive Spanish-language home of the tournament in the United States, has announced th...
12/05/2026
The NHL has announced the return of Stanley Pup for its third consecutive year, a 90-minute special featuring adoptable rescue dogs competing on a miniature rin...
12/05/2026
NBCUniversal presented its 2026 Upfront to advertisers at Radio City Music Hall, detailing upcoming programming across NBC, Peacock, Bravo, and Versant properti...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced funding for the Fandom and Social Connection Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Publ...
12/05/2026
TNDV and Live Media, both divisions of Live Media Group, supported live broadcast coverage around NCAA Final Four weekend in Indianapolis, including the March M...
12/05/2026
The European Football Alliance (EFA) has announced a content distribution agreement with Fubo Sports Network, the free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channel ...
12/05/2026
For the first time, Spanish-speaking fans in the U.S. will have two separate tel...
12/05/2026
CP Communications led a comprehensive spectrum management initiative on behalf of Churchill Downs during Kentucky Derby week, coordinating RF assets across the ...
12/05/2026
LiveU has announced a strategic partnership with DRONERESPONDERS, a 501(c)3 non-...
12/05/2026
Open Broadcast Systems has announced that BMC TV, a specialist in IP transport of broadcast content, has selected the Open Broadcast Systems 5G Flyaway solution...
12/05/2026
NEP Europe, part of NEP Group, has announced it will deliver broadcast solutions...
12/05/2026
Grass Valley has announced continued collaboration with Ravensbourne University ...
12/05/2026
Stats Perform has announced the launch of Opta Pulse, an AI-assisted video creation and distribution platform for leagues, rights holders, and broadcasters. The...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced a collaboration with Sesame Workshop to integrate Sesame Street characters into FOX Sports' FIFA World Cup 2026 programming. Conten...
12/05/2026
To date, NHL Productions has produced 19 broadcasts with commentary in American Sign Language
NHL in ASL (American Sign Language) may be just one show, but the...
12/05/2026
Google's Brian Albert: creators, athletes, highlights, nostalgia, second-scr...
12/05/2026
A still from Past Lives by Celine Song, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. (Courtesy of Sundance Institute | p...
12/05/2026
Spotify is where fans and artists come together, turning discovery into somethin...
12/05/2026
Features patented Marco-MMC clocking technology
Black Lion Audio's latest release combines the company's expertise in clocking with their renowned p...
12/05/2026
New Track Panel, sequencer upgrades & more
Following their recent public beta release, Reason Studios have announced the full release of Reason 14. With the...
12/05/2026
One month to go! SBS reveals expansive FIFA World Cup 2026 lineup beyond the pi...
12/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents its advanced solutions for power electronics testing at...
12/05/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, has developed a modified fund raising p...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Tyrell Corporation, specialists in high-end live sports and entertainment broadcasts, was tasked with delivering compelling broadcast coverage of premier equest...
12/05/2026
Registration is now open for IBC2026 as the global media, entertainment and technology community prepares to converge on the RAI Amsterdam from 11 14 September ...
12/05/2026
Ross Video, a global leader in live video production technology, will present its latest innovations and integrated production workflows at BroadcastAsia 2026, ...
12/05/2026
500 selected leaders from around the world across start-ups, corporates, and venture capital. Over 50bn in assets under management among attending investors, a...
12/05/2026
CVP, one of Europe's leading suppliers of professional video and broadcast solutions, has appointed Randy Koeman as Sales Manager, Netherlands, marking anot...
12/05/2026
Taiwan Television has expanded its HD content ingest workflow capabilities by investing in the PlayBox Neo Suite - a leading multi-channel multi-server UHD/HD/S...
12/05/2026
Jigsaw24 is strengthening its media team with the appointment of Tom Laker as Client Director and Ashish Chauhan as Project Manager. These strategic hires bring...
12/05/2026
Broadcast playout leader showcases hybrid IP infrastructure and workflow automation with Videoland deployment as regional benchmark...
12/05/2026
dzjinius, the all-in-one production management platform for the media and entertainment industry, will showcase its centralised approach to production workflows...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
NUGEN Audio will debut Version 1.1 of DialogCheck, its intelligent dialog intelligibility and compliance tool, at the 2026 Media Production & Technology Show (S...
12/05/2026
The reactive visuals can adapt to any stage or screen setup and comprise 50 layers of Notch content
Today, Disguise announced that its high performance GX 3 m...
12/05/2026
Snapgrid , Snapbag & Airglow Expand Creative Control for the ARRI Modular LED BarFollowing the launch of the ARRI Omnibar, DoPchoice introduces a dedicated li...
12/05/2026
May 12th, 2026 Press Materials Available Here
TRIBECA FESTIVAL UNVEILS 2026 GAMES PROGRAM
Tribeca Celebrates Its 25th Anniversary With World Premieres and Pl...
12/05/2026
May 12th, 2026 Press Materials Available Here
MADONNA BRINGS THE WORLD PREMIERE OF CONFESSIONS II TO 2026 TRIBECA FESTIVAL
The Global Icon Will Unveil a Cine...
12/05/2026
Customer demand for data continues to grow in the first quarter of 2026 at Magya...
Live From Paris 2024: NBC Olympics Mark Lazarus, Rick Cordella and Molly Solomon on the Success of the Paris Games Lazarus says Billion Dollar Lab drives ad sales but also lays foundation for future live events By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director 
