It’s official: the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games attracted the largest global TV audience ever. 
Between August 8 and August 24, 4.7 billion viewers — or 70% of the world’s population — tuned in to watch the Games, according to Nielsen.  In comparison, 3.9 billion watched the 2004 Athens Games, while 3.6 billion followed the 2000 Sydney Games on TV. 
Host nation China led the viewing with 94% of Chinese viewers tuning in to the Olympics TV coverage, Nielsen reported.  South Korea, though a much less populous nation, also recorded 94% audience reach.  Mexico followed closely with …

More than two billion people — almost one-third of the world’s population — watched the 2008 Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremony on Friday, August 8, Nielsen reported Thursday.
Nielsen’s estimates are based on television audience data collected from 38 key markets throughout the world, including host nation China, the U.S., Brazil, South Africa, Italy, and Australia.
The Asia-Pacific region had the highest audience reach, with more than five in 10 people watching the opening ceremony.  Europe and North America followed with 30% and 24% reach, respectively.
Within Asia-Pacific, China had the highest percentage of …

For perhaps the first time in Olympics history, a significant number of viewers will track the Games’ results via their mobile phones. 
American consumers are particularly likely to view Olympics content on their phones, a recent survey by Nielsen Mobile found. 
Consumers in the UK and Spain also showed strong interest in watching the Beijing Games and receiving Olympics results from their mobile phones, according to Nielsen Mobile.  Those in the UK said they plan to read Olympics-related Web articles and monitor the medal count via their phones, while Spanish consumers reported they will most likely …