One of the many issues I've flogged over the years (in articles like this one) is that it's ridiculous to state that the Academy Awards have an audience of a billion viewers. The number isn't even close to that. It may not even be close to a quarter of that.
In a piece in the current issue of The New Yorker, Daniel Rodosh says all the same things I've been saying about this.
By the way: I've decided not to Live Oscar Blog this year…but my friend Gary Sassaman will be doing so over on his page. Tune in and see what Gary has to say.