You think NBC is making a good return on its investment for these Olympics? You don't even know what a good return is. NBC had to bid for these Olympic rights in an auction, and they ended up paying more than $1.5 billion for the most recent summer and winter games. But how much did CCTV, the national broadcast network in China, pay for the money-minting opportunity to carry the games in its home country? (Hint: there's nobody for them to bid against):
CCTV is part of an Asian consortium, the Asian Broadcasting Union, that cut a group deal in the 1990s to pay $17.5 million for the 2008 Games. China's share of that fee is not publicly disclosed, but a source said it was "small."
Yes: the only network in China paid a "small" share of $17.5 million to show the Beijing Olympics, which will net them hundreds of millions of dollars. If this isn't a strong argument in favor of Communism I don't know what is. [NYS]