Viacom18 has made a remarkable entry into the Olympics broadcast arena with its Paris Olympics 2024 coverage, setting new benchmarks for viewership in India. The media giant’s first-ever Olympics broadcast has achieved unprecedented success, with over 1500 crore minutes of content consumed by more than 17 crore viewers. This milestone has firmly established Paris 2024 as the most-watched Olympics in Indian history.

This exceptional performance underscores the growing popularity of Olympic sports and the effectiveness of Viacom18’s broadcast strategy.

Paris Olympics Coverage Breaks Records with 1500 Crore Minutes of Viewing

Comprehensive Coverage Across Multiple Platforms

Viacom18 provided extensive coverage of the Paris Olympics, offering fans a diverse viewing experience across multiple platforms. JioCinema featured 20 simultaneous feeds, all available for free, enabling viewers to follow their favourite sports and athletes at their convenience. This approach ensured that Paris 2024 reached a wider audience, making it the most-watched Olympics in Indian television history.

The broadcast included 17 sport-specific feeds and three curated feeds, all in stunning 4K quality. This allowed viewers to closely follow top athletes from around the globe. On linear television, Sports18 – 1, Sports18 – 1 HD, and Sports18 – 2 channels focused on India-centric coverage, while Sports18 – 3 provided global action. The channels offered English commentary on Sports18 – 1 and Sports18 – 1 HD, with Tamil and Telugu options available through a language button. Sports18 – 2 catered to Hindi-speaking audiences.

Rising Interest in Non-Cricket Sports Among Indian

Viacom18’s Paris 2024 coverage highlights a growing interest in non-cricket sports among Indian audiences. According to Kiran Mani, CEO of Viacom18 Digital, “Paris 2024 is a prime example of how non-cricket sporting action is continuing to grow in adoption amongst Indian audiences.” The network’s comprehensive production, featuring expert analysis from former Olympians and commentary in multiple languages, made the coverage highly engaging for viewers. Mani further emphasized, “Our goal is to enhance the sports viewing experience, engage fans across all screens for longer, and provide advertisers with effective avenues to reach their audiences.”

Engaging Coverage and High Advertising Success

The coverage of the Paris Olympics started with a dedicated camera feed capturing the India float during the Opening Ceremony, complemented by live studio interviews. This segment was broadcast across the Sports18 Network, Colors Network, VH1, and MTV, in addition to being available for free on JioCinema.

Viacom18’s approach to presenting the Olympics was designed to maximize viewer engagement. The broadcast’s extensive reach and high production quality attracted significant interest from advertisers. The company reported a substantial increase in advertising revenue, with a 2.6x growth compared to the previous edition. Notable Co-Presenting Partners included Reliance Foundation, SBI, and JSW, while Coca-Cola India Limited and Herbalife were among the Associate Partners. Other major advertisers included RBI, AMFI, Aditya Birla Capital, Air India, Bacardi Martini India Limited, and MRF.