Another conversation about NBC Sports Network developed on the ol' Twitter timeline today after the channel's ratings for the season opening Formula One race in Australia were revealed. F1 is one of NBCSN's flagship sports and a new, key acquisition, but the ratings tell an all too familiar story. Thanks to SBJ's John Ourand and Austin Karp, here are the viewership numbers from this year's race compared to last year's coverage on Speed…
2012 (Speed): 314k live viewers, 204k on replay = 518k total viewers
2013 (NBCSN): 124k live viewers, 138k on replay = 262k total viewers
The audience from last year's Australian GP on Speed was cut in half with its move to NBC Sports Network. Just 50.5% of viewers made the move from Speed to NBCSN. That's an astonishing figure.
I could understand some drop because of the switch from a motorsports channel to a general sports network and F1/motorsports fans needing more time to find it… but a 50% year-to-year drop is alarming. If that trend continues, it's a worrying sign for the overall footprint of NBC Sports Network.
The ratings brought up the age old question once again – are sports fans even aware of NBCSN's existence? Can they even find it on their program guide? How much of an awareness problem does NBCSN have more than a year after its rebranding from Versus?
So let's stop all the speculation once and all.
Do you know what channel NBC Sports Network is?
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