U.S. Olympic Committee Postpones Cable Network Plans

COLORADO SPRINGS: The U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) is postponing its plans for a dedicated U.S. cable network—announced in July in partnership with Comcast Corporation—after encountering resistance from the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

In early July, Comcast and USOC announced plans for the U.S. Olympic Network (USON), which would launch next year after the Vancouver Games. The channel aimed to focus on American athletes as they worked to reach the Olympic Games, covering championship competitions and, after 2012, trial events. The lineup would also include news reports, commentary, interviews from the locations of future Olympic and Paralympic Games, classic footage, movies, documentaries, original series, instructional programming and talk shows. Immediately following the announcement, the IOC registered its discontent, stating that it had not given its approval to the new venture, which raised "complex legal and contractual issues," and could cause tensions with NBC Universal, which has the U.S. broadcast rights for the 2010 and 2012 games.

Larry Probst, the chairman of the USOC, met with IOC’s president, Jacques Rogge, in Berlin over the weekend. Probst said in a statement: "I took the opportunity to stress our commitment to being good partners with the IOC and assured President Rogge that we will secure the full support and cooperation of the IOC before we move forward with the Olympic Network. In order to facilitate a productive dialogue, the USOC has decided to delay further development of the network until we have resolved all issues of concern to the IOC. President Rogge and I agreed to meet again soon and to continue these constructive and mutually beneficial discussions."