One of the big reasons that NBC is losing money on the Olympics is because they outbid the next competitor (FOX) by
$700 million to show the Vancouver and London games. The Olympics has been a ratings boost to NBC and I don't understand why they don't try to show as many live events as possible. You've already spent a lot of money to show the games, why would you
not show them?
As others have said, the Summer Olympics got all-day coverage, specifically on NBC Universal's cable outlets. The Summer Olympics are arguably and probably more popular than the Winter Olympics. However, I don't know how you increase the popularity of the Winter Olympics by not showing the Winter Olympics. USA Network has repeats of NCIS all day yesterday. They decided to show that than a live medaling event (bobsled) that they could have aired yesterday afternoon? Many have said that NBC Universal can air live and full events on their cable stations for the fans of the respective sports that want to watch the entire event, while still airing a "recap" with some live coverage on their broadcast station in primetime.
I think showing only the winners and contenders is a disservice, for ANY sport. First of all, I think it's pretty rude to the athletes themselves, many of whom just dream to compete at the Olympics, to not show their one moment of glory. Second of all, you can appreciate the skills of the elite athletes when you see others falter. When you see that not everyone can skate a clean short program or ski as fast as another skier, it makes the elite athletes stand out that much more.
And don't get me started on nbcolympics.com, which is not even an option for those us ARE living in America but don't use Microsoft Silverlight.