They sure were! They already had a half decent one throughout 2008 and the beginning of 2009:
But by March 2009 they were using the solid teal one for some reason. They eventually replaced it with an Olympics version which was much more tolerable:
Props for creativity but honestly, that is far too big and intrusive. It should animate on & off screen a few times. I honestly believe watermarks like that have the opposite effect of making regular viewers want to tune in.