Spectators can enjoy this year's Olympic Games in a way like no other. Thanks to the Max platform, the enhanced streaming platform of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), which has transformed the way Europe watches and experiences the Olympic Games. Spectators are thus enjoying this year's games in a way that is historically unprecedented. The total number of unique users of WBD's streaming platforms watching Paris 2024 surpassed the numbers from the last Summer Olympics in Tokyo 2020 already after the second day of this year's games. At the same time, the company surprisingly managed to break the previous record for the number of acquisitions of retail subscribers in one day during the opening weekend.
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The total number of streaming minutes of this year's Olympic Games on Max and discovery+ has almost exceeded one billion, which is about seven times more than at the same moment of the previous games in Tokyo 2020. In absolute numbers, this is 75% of the streaming minutes recorded during the entire Olympics before four years. Users are also spending significantly more time on Max and discovery+, roughly 63% more than during Tokyo 2020. Five times more users are watching the Olympic Games on WBD streaming platforms than four years ago. A key prerequisite for achieving these numbers was the launch of Max, which led to a significant expansion of the audience, which currently corresponds to 80%. In terms of the number of viewers of streaming platforms, Saturday, June 27, was a record so far.
“The Paris 2024 Summer Olympics are off to a great start, and thanks to the recent launch of the Max platform in Europe, we're breaking records for viewership and engagement. The model, which combines an offer of premium films and other scripted content with the best real-life entertainment formats and major events from the world of international sports, attracts more and more people who stay with us for a significantly longer period of time than before. But the Olympics have only just started, so we're anxiously awaiting the numbers the next two weeks will bring." states JB Perrette, CEO and President of Global Streaming and Gaming Strategy at WBD.
"We have been intensively preparing for Paris 2024 for several years, so it is very satisfying to see how European viewers praise both the quality of our sports production and the user experience of the new streaming platform. It only took a few days for us to get a picture of the fact that the combination of premium sport and entertainment just works. Whether the line-up of more than hundreds of presenters and experts, the next-gen rooftop studio WBD House or new features such as medal notifications for Max and discovery+ is the biggest merit, I will leave it to the evaluation of each viewer." complements it Andrew Georgiou, Chief Executive and President of WBD UK and Ireland and WBD Sports Europe.
The Eurosport website, which offers freely accessible Olympic coverage and short video formats, is also experiencing an unprecedented rush. The number of visitors has increased by more than 43% since the games began. The linear broadcasting of Eurosport stations in all relevant markets also attracted more viewers compared to Tokyo 2020. Viewership is up 98% for now, reversing the negative trend of decline in total television viewers seen in recent years. Broadcasting of the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics will conclude with the closing ceremony scheduled for Sunday, August 11, 2024. This year's Games are the first under the WBD banner, which is via Eurosport's linear stations and the Max and discovery+ platforms, broadcasts in 50 markets in 19 language mutations.
