• by Wayne Friedman , January 7, 2008

LAS VEGAS -- NBC Universal, the official U.S. media company of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, has made Microsoft its exclusive technology partner for the games, Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates announced at the Consumer Electronics Show here on Sunday night.

"It will let us illustrate why TV will be different," says Gates.

The alliance, called "NBCOlympics.com on MSN," will deliver 3600 hours of sports coverage in both live and on-demand formats.

Some 2,200 hours of live-event video coverage will be available, and more than 20 simultaneous live video streams at peak times. There will be some 3,000 hours of on-demand video content, including full-event replays, highlights, features, interviews and encore packages.

Using Microsoft's new Silverlight software, users can use the "enhanced playback mode," which offers a high-quality full-screen viewing experience. Silverlight will also enable fans to access related content--statistics, comprehensive bios, rules and expert analysis from NBC's Olympic digital media team.

MSN users also can receive live video alerts, and social networking features will be available.

NBC says it went with Microsoft specifically because its new Silverlight technology will "deliver the kind of next-generation online viewing experience that will change the way the Olympics is experienced for millions of fans in 2008."