Friday, April 15, 2011

2PM 1 billion watched a cricket final

India has recently been playing in the World Cup of cricket and, as one would expect from a 1+ billion nation, lots of people watched. In the semi-final against Pakistan, the number was about 1 billion, and in the final against Sri Lanka, at least 1 billion, making it the most-watched sporting contest ever. (The opening ceremonies from 2008 Beijing drew between 1 and 4 billion people, including 800+ million Chinese). This means that about 1 in 6 humans watched something, and most of us are probably hearing about it for the very first time two weeks later. I often like to talk about being aware of the things that most others are aware of, but I suddenly feel like the outsider, even though 5/6ths of humanity is with me on the outside. What’s even more interesting is that the expectation for the Prince William wedding ceremony is 2 billion worldwide. 2 Billion! Somewhere around 1 in 3 humans will watch that wedding. Who is Prince William again?

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