NBC Claims Streaming Crown, Angers NFL Fans

Comcast announced that its exclusive showing of the NFL Wild Card game between the Miami Dolphins and defending champions Kansas City Chiefs on its Peacock streaming service Saturday night was the largest live streaming event in U.S. history and breaking the record for the largest internet traffic usage on a single day, consuming 30% of internet traffic during the game.

In all, the game reached 27.6 million total viewers, according to Nielsen,  6% more viewers than last year's primetime AFC Wild Card contest, which garnered an average 21.8 million viewers across NBC, Peacock, NBC Sports Digital and NFL Digital.

Considering the NFL’s massive popularity, particularly during the playoffs, the numbers are hardly surprising. Comcast’s NBCUniversal division paid the NFL $110 million for the exclusive Peacock showing, which was originally reported back in May when most fans were paying little attention. This wasn't the first "exclusive" for Peacock, which exclusively streamed the regular season NFL matchup between the L.A. Chargers and the Buffalo Bills—but that was on Dec. 23 and wasn't an all important playoff. 

Comcast didn’t report how many subscriptions resulted from Saturday night’s game—which was simulcast live on NBC in Miami and Kansas City—but despite ticking off many viewers who resisted having to sign up for a streaming service to watch an NFL playoff game (and Taylor Swift)—Comcast was crowing about the results. 

“From NBC Sports and Peacock to the Comcast team, our entire company worked seamlessly to plan for this game and executed flawlessly to deliver a streaming experience with the NFL on a scale that’s never been done before. It’s a very proud moment,” said Comcast Chairman and CEO Brian Roberts, in a statement.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said the league “couldn’t be prouder of our partnership with Peacock and are thrilled with the results of the first-ever exclusively live streamed NFL playoff game. To best serve our fans, we need to ensure games are available to them as their viewing habits change and this includes digital distribution as we continue to help shape the future of the sports and entertainment industry.”

It also came as no surprise that this exclusivity, a first for such a popular game, raised the ire of fans nationwide who took to social media to vent their anger. 

The frustration even reached the halls of Congress where Rep. Patrick Ryan (D-NY) fired off a letter to the NFL. 

"The NFL Playoffs will begin tomorrow, and millions of fans are looking forward to kicking back and watching their favorite teams play,” Ryan told NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. “It’s a tradition as American as apple pie. For decades, NFL playoffs games have been widely available on national TV networks so that Americans can conveniently watch the playoffs at no additional cost.”

“Yet this year, you’ve decided to rip off fans by exclusively broadcasting tomorrow’s Chiefs vs. Dolphins wildcard game on Peacock. For the first time ever, fans will be forced to choose between signing up for yet another expensive streaming service or missing out on a major playoff game.”

Ryan said the situation was a “disgrace,” and claimed that viewers were being double-charged since they were already paying cable TV providers a fee for NBC. He urged NFL and NBC to broadcast the game on the network and stop such “exclusive” streaming deals, expressing doubt over whether exempting the league from antitrust rules was a good idea. 

“Congress granted the NFL an antitrust exemption in its broadcast deals with the expectation that you wouldn’t use it to screw over fans. That was clearly a mistake,” he wrote.