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Friday, March 4th, 2016

BYTES: NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA PRESENTS EXPANDED COVERAGE OF 2016 CYCLING SEASON

NBC SPORTS DIGITAL “BYTES”

March 4, 2016 – Vol. 85

NBC Sports Digital “Bytes” is a collection of highlights, information and metrics for NBC Sports Digital properties. Previous editions can be found on NBCSportsGroupPressbox.com.

NBC Sports Live Extra Presents Expanded Coverage of 2016 Cycling Season

NBC Sports Live Extra – NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs – presents an expanded cycling schedule in 2016, with coverage of two events this weekend. NBC Sports Live Extra continues daily live coverage of the UCI Track Cycling World Championships tomorrow at 1:30 p.m. ET, and will kick off live Paris-Nice coverage with the Prologue this Sunday, Mar. 6, at 7:20 a.m. NBC Sports Live Extra will present live coverage of 10 different cycling events through June 2016.

Below is the schedule for NBC Sports Live Extra’s cycling coverage through Sunday, Mar. 13:

Date Time (ET) Race Network
Wed., Mar. 2 2 p.m. UCI Track Cycling World Championships NBC Sports Live Extra
Thurs., Mar. 3 1:30 p.m. UCI Track Cycling World Championships NBC Sports Live Extra
Fri., Mar. 4 1:30 p.m. UCI Track Cycling World Championships NBC Sports Live Extra
Sat., Mar. 5 1:30 p.m. UCI Track Cycling World Championships NBC Sports Live Extra
Sun., Mar. 6 7:20 a.m. Paris-Nice: Prologue NBC Sports Live Extra
Sun., Mar. 6 8:30 a.m. UCI Track Cycling World Championships NBC Sports Live Extra
Mon., Mar. 7 9:10 a.m. Paris-Nice: Stage 1 NBC Sports Live Extra
Tues., Mar. 8 9:50 a.m. Paris-Nice: Stage 2 NBC Sports Live Extra
Wed., Mar. 9 9:50 a.m. Paris-Nice: Stage 3 NBC Sports Live Extra
Thurs., Mar. 10 9:10 a.m. Paris-Nice: Stage 4 NBC Sports Live Extra
Fri., Mar. 11 9:10 a.m. Paris-Nice: Stage 5 NBC Sports Live Extra
Sat., Mar. 12 9:20 a.m. Paris-Nice: Stage 6 NBC Sports Live Extra

In addition, NBC Sports Live Extra will present coverage of the following events through June 2016:

Dates Event Networks
Sun., Mar. 27 Criterium International NBC Sports Live Extra
Mon., April 11 Paris-Roubaix NBC Sports Live Extra
Sat., April 23 Fleche-Wallone NBC Sports Live Extra
Sun., April 24 Liege-Bastogne-Liege NBC Sports Live Extra
Sun., May 5 – Thurs., May 26 Amgen Tour of California NBC Sports Live Extra
Sun., June 5 – Sat., June 12 Criterium Du Dauphine NBC Sports Live Extra
Sat. June 11 – Fri., June 24 Tour de Suisse NBC Sports Live Extra
Tues., June 28 Tour of Yorkshire NBC Sports Live Extra

Television coverage of NBC Sports Group’s 2016 cycling schedule will be presented by NBC, NBCSN and Universal HD. Click here for more information.

Premier League & NHL Coverage Sets Milestones on NBC Sports Live Extra This Week

Manchester United’s 3-2 win over Arsenal on Sunday ranked as NBC Sports Live Extra’s most-streamed match ever, delivering 6.2 million live minutes and surpassing Arsenal v. Liverpool in August 2015 (6 million live minutes, 8/24/15). The Red Devils’ win was propelled by 18-year-old Marcus Rashford, who scored two goals in his Premier League debut.

In addition, Wednesday’s Blackhawks vs. Red Wings game ranked as NBC Sports Live Extra’s second-most streamed regular-season game ever, delivering 2 million live minutes, behind only this season’s opener between the Rangers and Blackhawks (3.7 million live minutes, 10/7/15). The Chicago Blackhawks topped the Detroit Red Wings 5-2 in Wednesday night’s game.

NHL Trade Deadline Propels Pro Hockey Talk to Best Traffic Day of the Year

The NHL trade deadline on Monday propelled NBCSports.com’s Pro Hockey Talk to its best day of 2016, delivering 245,000 page views. In addition, the site saw its second-best day this year in visits (145,000) and third-best day this year in unique users (122,000) on Monday.

“Mascot Madness” proves to be a massive hit for CSN Chicago

In accordance with its live on-air and digital streaming coverage of the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Boys & Girls State Basketball Championships, CSN Chicago launched an online tournament entitled “Mascot Madness,” which enables fans to determine the state’s top high school sports team nickname.  The network created a 64-team bracket, similar to NCAA’s “March Madness,” and fans can vote through www.csnchicago.com/mascotmadness. In addition, the voting portal Spredfast tabulates all data through Facebook and Twitter hashtags.

As of Thursday, March 3, CSN Chicago has received over 849,000 total page views for the contest with over 417,000 unique users, totaling over 214,00 official votes. The champion of CSN Chicago’s “Mascot Madness” tournament will be officially announced during the network’s live on-air and digital coverage of the 2016 IHSA Class 4A Boys State Basketball Championship game on Saturday, March 19 at 8 p.m. CT.

ICYMI on NBC SportsWorld, NBC Sports Digital’s Long-Form Website

The North London Derby, one of the most fearsome in the Premier League, is renewed Saturday on NBCSN, and the stakes couldn’t be higher. Joe Prince-Wright tells the story of the ancient rivalry between Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur and the city that surrounds them.

Money talks – in business and in baseball, and when baseball players are encouraged to leave money on the table, there’s no sympathy for them. Joe Posnanski writes about the tough choice facing every ballplayer.

The NWHL promises to change the face of women’s hockey. But with an inexperienced commissioner, and a business model that doesn’t inspire confidence, will it really be a game-changer? Brittany Burke has the story.

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