NBC TEAMS WITH FACEBOOK TO CONNECT WITH OLYMPIC ATHLETES

NBC and Facebook announced today (Wednesday) that they will set up an NBC Olympics page on Facebook that will feature polls, photos,trivia and other exclusive content. To make all of the online discussions about the Olympic events manageable, NBC said it also plans to launch “Talk Meter,” a new tool that will inform Facebook users what fans are talking about. “With the Olympic Games being one of those rare cultural moments that everyone talks about, people will watch the games on NBC and engage with their friends and favorite athletes on NBC Olympics’ Facebook page,” Andy Mitchell, Strategic Partner Manager at Facebook, said in a statement. “NBC’s viewers will get to see what Olympic athletes and others connected with the Games are talking about on Facebook, adding a new element to NBC Olympics’ coverage.” Gary Zenkel, president of NBC Olympics, said that the network recognizes that “social media is an important part of how fans consume and interact during the Olympics.” Neither side indicated how it would monetize the collaboration or even whether the deal involved any financial consideration.