Paris 2024 rendering
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This summer's opening ceremony for the 2024 Olympics in Paris will be an opportunity for the host nation to warmly welcome the 10,500 Olympic athletes, but also to show off to the billions of people watching around the world. there is. This is our home.We look forward to sharing with you over the next 16 daysis the subtext of the gala, but its message is often overshadowed by the somewhat hysterical themes radiating from the television. We are a strange and noisy people. Marvel at our dizzying theater.
If national parades and the spectacle that surrounds them serve as a kind of cultural crash course for the entire world, Danny Boyle's spectacular opening pageant in 2012 explores the millennium of British history. It was like mainlining history to the Britpop soundtrack – they also set the tone for just about everything that came next. The London Games opened with a salute to the National Health Service and BASE jumping stunts by stand-ins for two of the green, welcoming land's most famous figures: James Bond and Queen Elizabeth II. As the Zimbabwe Olympic team completed their circuit with smiles and waves, it was clear that Boyle's hilariously goofy production had opened the door to a truly memorable midsummer event.
The next afternoon, when the Nielsen numbers dropped, NBC knew it was taking a hit. A record 40.7 million Americans watched the opening ceremony, which told advertisers nearly everything they needed to know about how their investments would pay off. The 2012 London Games averaged 31.1 million prime-time viewers, making it the most-watched Summer Olympics held outside the United States. Although overall television usage trends don't favor reenactments, for our Gallic cousins, maybe they do. July 26th was for us all to gather around the subway.
In a bold new twist to the traditional stadium-based ceremony, France will stage their opening match as a traveling celebration. The flotilla carrying the athletes will take part in a nautical parade down the Seine River, passing through the heart of the City of Lights and passing landmarks such as the Louvre Museum and the under-construction Notre Dame Cathedral. (Although nearly destroyed by a fire in 2019, the cathedral is scheduled to reopen in time for Christmas.) Barring any last-minute changes to the manifesto, the trip is scheduled to end at the base of the Eiffel Tower.
Aside from the sheer novelty value of diving on a six-kilometre river voyage in a standard single-venue format, the fact that this year's ceremony will be overseen by one of Europe's strangest and most wonderful peoples is one of the best in the United States. It's sure to attract a lot of attention.
The French National Olympic Sportif Committee has not made it clear whether the usual branded choreography will be performed at the opening match. genesis In any case, it's no surprise that they run their boat trips with a signature show of eccentricity and exaggeration.If you can't get Jean Reno to roller skate like Jean-Paul Sartre, is it worth your life to create a stylish indigestion pill? Tribute to Jerry LewisOr how about a hologram of Serge Gainsbourg amiably chirping next to stinky cartoon villain Pepe Le Pew? (The French don't even have a word for “cancellation.”)
And before anyone starts throwing around the “ugly American” cliche, these are the same people who designed the Olympic mascot after a hat. Because of course they did. Friguet is lovely enough, despite some clumsy allegorical gestures, but perhaps a Gauloise should be placed on her lower lip to keep her verisimilitude. Like most mascots, “The Refrigerator” embodies a very stoic silence, though there's a good chance he's probably muttering something like:La Vie Est NullHe whispered whenever he wasn't waving the tricolor.
If Paris' watery opener draws a big crowd, NBC can hope to maintain that impression throughout the tournament. Yes, the decline in American television habits is rather alarming. Ratings so far this season are down 7% compared to the same period last year, and an additional 17% compared to a similar period in 2021-2022. But broadcast and cable Olympic platforms are much more than that. According to Comcast's latest quarterly earnings report, the company now boasts more than 31 million Peacock paid subscribers, which represents a 55% increase compared to the Tokyo Olympics.
As has been the case with the past few Olympics, NBCUniversal guarantees impressions across all of its platforms, which naturally makes it easier to meet advertiser expectations. And while marketers are certainly not scared of the recent lack of ratings, this was largely due to a less crowded backdrop and a kind of global stagnation. One media buyer recently told us that Paris “feels like it's getting back to normal in terms of viewership potential; atmosphere” After the long-delayed Tokyo Olympics and a relatively unenjoyable performance amid Beijing's ugly political backdrop, the upcoming Olympics will likely be the first “normal” Games since London.
What's more, the six-hour time difference between New York and Paris is far more comfortable than the 13-hour time difference that wreaked havoc in 2018 and 2021. NBC's revenue of over $1 billion suggests that: Advertisers haven't given up on the Olympic dream, but even if Paris does indeed get back on track, this broadcast can only serve as a preview of what's in store when Los Angeles hosts the Summer Olympics in four years' time. There is a high possibility that it will not work.
Another factor working in NBC's favor is the out-of-home effect, which has favored sports since Nielsen began combining bonus distribution and national TV panel numbers in 2020. Currently, there is a growing audience in bars, restaurants, and other public places. NBC is expected to add millions of impressions each night of the Summer Olympics, as venues (and the homes of friends and family) also count toward the official ratings tally. Every attention counts towards the official total, and OOH goes a long way in winning back the audience base that chooses to spend their summer nights far from their couches and subways.
Now, the more nights NBC hits its ratings guarantee, the more likely it is to keep its massive revenue, but the Olympics are clearly not about making money. NBC currently has a $7.75 billion rights agreement with the IOC, which is set to expire after 2032. With such thin margins, it is difficult to make a profit, but the company has been slowly making profits in recent years. (Even Boffo London broke even, as sales essentially offset rights fees.)
With 112 days left until the opening ceremony, NBC seems to be on a roll. Aside from the ease of selection from official Olympic sponsors such as Toyota, Visa, Samsung, and Procter & Gamble, all of which were among the top spenders in Tokyo, NBC had no competition. The advantage is that there is no need to take many measures. programming. Summer reruns and unscripted lowest common denominator programs are unlikely to capture prime-time viewers, and with the exception of baseball, the period from July 26 to August 11 is not necessarily a sportsman's paradise. Do not mean. hon hon hon.
Of course, the U.S. team will have to embark on its usual medal-finding-and-destroying mission if NBC is to add to what is expected to be an incredible opening match. The roster looks promising, with Simone Biles, Sidney McLaughlin-Levrone, Katie Ledecky, and future star Shakari Richardson all in the mix, and NBC is seeing a surge in interest thanks to all of its newly minted fans. There is likely to be. women's sports. Paris may not reach London's highs, but after recent disappointments in the Far East, NBCCeci Next Halfpipe” A sign will go up on Place de la Concorde.
