Of the $1.5 billion spent on U.S. Olympics-related advertising this summer, Lehman Brothers estimates $75 million to $100 million will go to Internet ads.
While still a small
proportion, that amount represents the highest online ad total for any Olympics to date, mainly as a result of the unprecedented level of online coverage planned by NBC. The network has said it will
provide 2,200 hours of live streaming of 25 events on NBCOlympics.com on MSN. The site will also offer 3,000 hours of replays and highlights.
Separately, the International Olympic Committee said
Monday that YouTube will stream about three hours a day of exclusive content from the Beijing Games starting Aug. 6.
o Lehman analyst Douglas Anmuth said pinpointing the Olympics digital ad spend
is difficult because some of it is bundled in with larger TV ad buys amounting to more than $1 billion. Official sponsors including Coca-Cola, GE and Kodak account for more than half of ad sales both
online and on television, according to the Lehman report on Olympics coverage and advertising.
An NBC Universal spokesman said Monday that more than 90% of NBC's Olympics online inventory was
sold out.--Mark Walsh