![Will Anyone Actually Watch the Olympics Online? [STUDY]](https://helios-i.mashable.com/imagery/archives/04FSXE4yPAJzUtwvVLMfXbi/hero-image.fill.size_1248x702.v1647021043.jpg)
But will sports fans take advantage of the surfeit of streaming video options available this July and August? One recent study predicts online viewing engagement will actually be quite low.
According to research by the sports media group Perform, just 16% of American sports fans plan to watch the action online via PC, and just 7% plan to do so by Internet-enabled mobile device. This despite the fact that NBCOlympics.com will stream every event from every sport as well as every medal ceremony -- 3,500 hours all told.
Seventy-one percent of Americans plan to watch the Games on TV the old fashioned way. Twenty-three percent said they'll read online via PC, and 7% by mobile device. 27% plan to read article offline, and 12% will follow along via social media.
In Australia, where much of the competition will take place during working hours as well, online viewing forecasts are also low. Ten percent of Australian respondents to the Perform survey said they'll watch online via PC, while just 6% said they'll watch on a mobile device. Seventy-three percent said they'll watch on regular television.
Streaming video engagement also looks to be low across the rest of Europe, but China is the Perform study's one outlier. Seventy percent of respondents there said they'll watch online via PC, while 35% said they plan to watch on an Internet connected mobile device. Fifty-five percent of Chinese respondents said they'll watch online via PC -- over 15% more than the next highest country, Brazil.
Check out the chart below for the full picture, then let us know in the comments -- will you watch any of this year's Olympics online? Why or why not?
[via PaidContent]