Ads have been streamed online along with the sporting event in the past, but advertisers haven’t been forced to buy in. But in February, for the first time, Super Bowl audiences will be able to livestream the ads during the game, as well.
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Since the ads will be shown online as well as on TV their reach will increase and so will the rates for buyers, the report claims buyers would have to pay as much as $4.7 million for a 30-second spot during Super Bowl next year. And to demonstrate just how big of a deal it is, they added another tidbit of info: CBS reportedly won’t be letting “people opt out” of the Internet streaming. Only 18 of 70 total advertisers elected to air their commercials during the online broadcast, which resulted in online viewers being treated to only a few of the ads during the game.
Live-stream Super Bowl ads have been part of the annual affair in the past, but they’ve never been bundled and sold as a combined deal to advertisers, the way CBS is trying to boldly do with Super Bowl 50. Tim Hanlon, founder and chief executive of the Vertere Group, a Chicago-based media-industry consultant, told Variety. But CBS’ big Super Bowl livestreaming move is the latest indication of streaming’s increasing importance to the NFL, its fans and advertisers.
Last year, NBC sold digital-only ads for the game that were only broadcasted via the online stream. Those numbers can dramatically rise if online viewers can also see commercials. Anheuser-Busch (ABI), PepsiCo (PEP) and Fiat Chrysler (FCAU) are expected to return to the Super Bowl next year, according to Variety, which first reported the news.
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NBC charged between $4.4 and $4.5 million for a 30-second spot for the most recent Super Bowl broadcast, a record price. Will you be one of many to do so?
