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Rio Olympics kept NBC on top with viewers again last week

Athletes pose for picture with performers during the closing ceremony in the Maracana stadium at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Aug. 21, 2016. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)
Athletes pose for picture with performers during the closing ceremony in the Maracana stadium at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Aug. 21, 2016. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham) Athletes pose for picture with performers during the closing ceremony in the Maracana stadium at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Aug. 21, 2016. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

By Associated Press 3 min read

NEW YORK (AP) – The Olympics in their final week were still golden for NBC. Once again, NBC’s nightly prime-time averages took the week’s top seven Nielsen slots. And NBC again left rival networks far behind in overall viewership.

But a drop in Olympics viewers compared to the previous week was notable.

So was the drop in TV viewership between the final seven nights of the Rio Olympics compared to four years ago at the London Games.

Consider the erosion from 29.1 million for the London Olympics’ 12th night, compared to 20.7 million for the same night (last Wednesday) in Rio. Or Rio’s 17 million viewers for Sunday’s closing ceremony, compared to 31 million for London.

Since 2012, viewers have gained new options and new screens for enjoying the Rio Olympics. The result: As a TV event, it clearly wasn’t the same as it’s been in past years.