> Actually, I'm surprised the Olympics themselves don't have a direct subscription for streaming the entire event NBC (and other networks around the world) pay

> Actually, I'm surprised the Olympics themselves don't have a direct subscription for streaming the entire event NBC (and other networks around the world) pay incredible amounts of money for those rights. And the arrangement makes sense for both parties: NBC can use it to boost viewing figures of their own shows in a way the Olympics couldn't/wouldn't. And they have surfaces to advertise coverage that the Olympics doesn't, or would have to go to considerable lengths to get. So it's a value multiplier for the Olympics to sell it rather than handle it themselves. In the words of the (NBC) TV Show 30 Rock: "You can't fight synergy, Lemon. It's bigger than all of us"