Viacom18 achieves highest ever viewership for Indian Olympics

Viacom18 achieved the highest ever viewership of the Indian Olympics across linear and digital platforms during its maiden Olympic broadcast.

According to the company’s press release, over 17 crore viewers visited JioCinema and Sports18 Network, with a total watch time of over 1,500 crore minutes. More and more people in India were watching Olympic content for longer periods of time, the company’s press release showed.

For the first time, the Indian Olympics were presented in 20 simultaneous feeds. Fans could watch their favourite events and Indian performances for free on JioCinema, anytime, on any device, making it the most-watched Olympics ever. There were 17 sports feeds and three curated feeds available in 4K, allowing viewers to follow the world’s best athletes in action at Paris 2024.

A record 69 brands participated in the advertising for the Olympic Games that aired in India, resulting in a 2.6x increase in advertising revenues compared to the Tokyo Olympics, the press release said. The co-presentation partners for the Viacom18 presentation were Reliance Foundation, SBI and JSW. Coca-Cola India Limited and Herbalife were Associate Partners and other major advertisers included RBI, AMFI, Aditya Birla Capital, Air India, Bacardi Martini India Limited and MRF.

The Paris 2024 showcase saw innovative advertising assets such as split-screen ads, 4-sided squeeze backs, contextual assets such as Super Start, Winning Moment, Super Saves and Branded Tabs on Medal Tally and Schedule, coupled with brand awareness during key Indian moments. This helped advertisers to attach an associative value to the event, the press release said.

“Paris 2024 is a great example of how non-cricket sports action continues to grow in acceptance among Indian audiences, with both the viewing figures and enthusiastic advertiser participation being a testament to that,” Kiran Mani, digital chief executive officer at Viacom18, said in a statement. “We are committed to continually improving the sports viewing experience, engaging sports fans across screens and for longer, while providing advertisers with the tools and opportunities to reach their consumers most effectively,” he added.

Viacom18 presented the Olympics in four languages ​​with an expert panel of former Olympians and the largest-ever on-site coverage of the event by an Indian broadcaster, with a crew of over 20 people and presence in six locations, the press release said.

The opening ceremony was broadcast on Sports18 Network, Colors Network, VH1 and MTV and also for free on JioCinema.

First publication: Aug 23, 2024 | 4:40 PM IST