LONDON -- The International Olympic Committee plans to begin negotiations on U.S. broadcast rights for the 2014 and 2016 Games next year.
IOC president Jacques Rogge tells the Associated Press the talks can go ahead in 2010 now that the U.S. appears to be coming out of the recession.
Rogge says the bidding could begin shortly after the Feb. 12-28 Winter Games in Vancouver.
The IOC had indefinitely postponed U.S. rights negotiations due to the economic downturn, but Rogge said Friday: "The economic climate seems to be reviving in the United States, so that's a good omen."
U.S. broadcast rights are the most lucrative single source of IOC marketing revenue. NBC paid $2.2 billion for rights to the Vancouver Games and 2012 London Olympics.
