When Facebook and Twitter announced deals with Comcast Corp.’s NBCUniversal to track Olympic social chatter, Jessica Guynn and Brian Solis discussed why for her story in The Los Angeles Times.

“The consumer voice is quickly becoming the new sweeps,” Altimeter Group analyst Brian Solis said. “NBC and any network covering live events must now think about designing integrated experiences across the screens in ways that go beyond just sharing social data.”

“The media still underestimates the role of social media,” Solis said. “They don’t yet understand the impact of social media on tune-in and on the ability to sell against it. I imagine that by the 2014 Winter Olympics, we’ll have a much better sense of what’s possible.”