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ESPN LIKELY TO BID MORE THAN $1 BILLION FOR UPCOMING OLYMPICS Wednesday, August 20 2008 ESPN chief George Bodenheimer and ESPN content head John Skipper indicated Tuesday that the cable network and ABC will likely be bidding for the rights to air the 2014 Winter Games and the 2016 Summer Games. Speaking at a media event to promote the upcoming start of ESPN's Monday Night Football franchise, the two suggested that the winning bidder would likely have to pay more than $1 billion. The rights for the current games cost (more) WEB NOT CUTTING OLYMPICS' AUDIENCE Tuesday, August 19 2008 
The
record
TV
ratings
of
the
Beijing
Olympics
during
their
first
week
despite
intensive
online
coverage
may
dispel
the
general
notion
that
the
Internet
poses
a
threat
to
broadcasters,
advertising
representatives
attending
the
Games
have
told
the
International
Herald
Tribune.
"People
have
always
been
talking
about
how
digital
media
will
take
away
audiences
from
TV,"
Chris
Reitermann,
president
of
the
Chinese
unit
of
OgilvyOne,
a
direct
marketing
agency,
told
the
newspaper.
"That's
just
not
happening.
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If a week had ten days, all of the top ten television shows last week would have been Summer Olympics telecasts. Even the other three programs that made it into the top ten attracted fewer than 25 percent of the viewers who tuned in to the Olympics telecasts. Thus far the Beijing Games are attracting more viewers than any other non-domestic Olympics telecast. Last week they averaged 28.7 million viewers, exceeded only by the Atlanta Games in 1996, when they averaged 32.1 million. Meanwhile, the three other major networks' ratings sank to record lows. Especially surprising may have been the fact that the Saturday Olympics telecasts ranked third on the list, seemingly defying the conventional industry wisdom that viewers abandon their TV sets on Saturday nights. Searching back, analysts discovered that the Saturday telecast was actually exceeded by an episode of The Golden Girls in 1990 and that the sitcom typically drew such large audiences back then. Overall, NBC averaged a 9.6 rating and a 28 share for the week. CBS followed in second place with a 1.3 rating and a 4 share. Fox placed third with a 1.2/4, edging out ABC with a 1.1/3. 
