NBCU Close to Selling Out Olympics Ad Inventory

NEW YORK, July 22: On pace
to break records from previous Olympics, NBC Universal has sold 90 percent of
its advertising inventory for this year’s games in Beijing, setting a target of
more than $1 billion in ad revenues.

"Advertisers across
all categories are recognizing the power of premium content and the strength of
the Olympic brand, particularly in an increasingly fragmented media
landscape," said Seth Winter, the senior VP of sales for NBC Sports &
Olympics. "Live sports continues to resonate with viewers, and advertisers
know the Olympics are one of the best ways to reach an engaged mass
audience."

Key categories, driven by
back-to-school spending, include corporate imaging, consumer electronics,
movies and retail. NBC Universal is set to present 3,600 hours of coverage from
the Beijing games, its 11th Olympics broadcast, across its portfolio
of free-to-air and cable networks, in addition to online and mobile broadcasts.
NBC holds the exclusive U.S. media rights to the Olympic Games through 2012,
which includes Vancouver 2010 and London 2012.

—By Mansha Daswani