Big Threes Revenues Increase 42%

Net revenues at the Big Three networks jumped 42.5%, to $2.6 billion, in the third quarter, thanks largely to the Olympics on NBC, according to Ernst & Young figures released by the Broadcast Financial Management Association. Sports advertising soared 280%, to $1.065 billion, sucking dollars out of news (down 9%), late night (down 6.5%) and daytime (down 4.5%). For the first nine months, Big Three revenues are up 25%, to $8.5 billion.