<p>The opening ceremony for the Paris Olympics drew 28.6 million US viewers, according to preliminary data from Comcast's NBCUniversal on Saturday, which the company said was the most-watched start to a summer Games since London in 2012.</p><p>The celebration on Friday featured athlete delegations floating down the Seine past Paris landmarks and singer Celine Dion's first public performance in years.</p><p>It is a crucial broadcast event for NBCUniversal which paid $7.65 billion to extend its rights to air the Games in the U.S. through 2032. NBCUniversal's Olympics media-rights deal is the largest in the world.</p><p>The viewership figure, which includes NBC and streaming service Peacock, is a boon for the broadcaster compared to just 17 million viewers for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.</p>.Olympics 2024 | Photos from Paris Games opening ceremony.<p>Both the Tokyo and Beijing 2022 Olympics presented a challenging time zone for American audiences and were beset by the pandemic.</p><p>Leading up to the Paris Olympics, NBCUniversal had been vocal about its plans to attract viewers back to the event. During its broadcast, singer Beyoncé introduced Team USA in a video that aired just before the American athletes appeared on the river, one of many celebrities who will take part in NBCUniversal's coverage throughout the Olympics.</p><p>It will also infuse AI technology into its coverage, including recreating the voice of sports commentator Al Michaels.</p>
<p>The opening ceremony for the Paris Olympics drew 28.6 million US viewers, according to preliminary data from Comcast's NBCUniversal on Saturday, which the company said was the most-watched start to a summer Games since London in 2012.</p><p>The celebration on Friday featured athlete delegations floating down the Seine past Paris landmarks and singer Celine Dion's first public performance in years.</p><p>It is a crucial broadcast event for NBCUniversal which paid $7.65 billion to extend its rights to air the Games in the U.S. through 2032. NBCUniversal's Olympics media-rights deal is the largest in the world.</p><p>The viewership figure, which includes NBC and streaming service Peacock, is a boon for the broadcaster compared to just 17 million viewers for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.</p>.Olympics 2024 | Photos from Paris Games opening ceremony.<p>Both the Tokyo and Beijing 2022 Olympics presented a challenging time zone for American audiences and were beset by the pandemic.</p><p>Leading up to the Paris Olympics, NBCUniversal had been vocal about its plans to attract viewers back to the event. During its broadcast, singer Beyoncé introduced Team USA in a video that aired just before the American athletes appeared on the river, one of many celebrities who will take part in NBCUniversal's coverage throughout the Olympics.</p><p>It will also infuse AI technology into its coverage, including recreating the voice of sports commentator Al Michaels.</p>