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Wednesday 24 August 2016 3:18 pm

Olympics on the move: Mobile traffic made up half of the BBC’s record online Olympics viewing

By: Billy Bambrough

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It may have been Team GB's best Olympic medal haul in 100 years, but the Rio Olympic Games smashed mobile viewing records as well. 

The BBC has said just under half of the 29.3m users of its BBC Sport live online coverage tuned in via a mobile platform, while the dedicated BBC Sport app accounted for 10 per cent of its Olympics coverage – 2.9m users.

In total the BBC attracted 102.3m viewers online across its BBC Sport website, app, digital TV, so-called red button coverage, and its new 360-degree video service.

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Of its total users, 68.3m came from within the UK, up from the 39m who tuned in online for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

The mobile viewing figures are a rare bright spot in what has largely been an Olympic games marred by controversy. 

The US may have topped the Olympics medals table, but US broadcaster NBC failed to even make the podium in Rio with with prime-time viewership down by 17 per cent compared with London 2012.

​Read more: Queen praises Olympic heroes

NBC forked out $12bn (£9bn) for the exclusive US television rights for the Games through to 2032. Many have suggested the network has not moved with younger generations in the shift to mobile.

The broadcaster has also come under fire for its use of a time delay when showing some events.

The BBC mobile usage data was originally shared with Telecoms.com.

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