Super Bowl commercials are big business, but if you want to get in on the action for Super Bowl XLVI, you’re already out of luck. As USA Today [1] reports, every spot is sold out. According to media buyers at Comcast-owned NBC Universal, companies are shelling out $3.5 million toward a single 30-second commercial, an increase from last year's $3 million price. In the past 11 years, ad prices have spiked 59 percent, breaking advertiser records for the NFL's biggest game and demonstrating the impact of the Super Bowl on the advertising industry.
"We have shattered any recent revenue stories in regards to the Super Bowl," Seth Winter, senior vice president of sales and marketing at NBC's sports group, told USA Today. Each 30-second spot was filled by Thanksgiving, Winters said, noting a new trend in more commercials lasting 60 seconds or more, versus just 30 seconds.
Some of the early details on who bought what include a 60-second spot from Volkswagen slated for the third quarter, a first-time appearance from yogurt company Dannon, cameos from NFL celebrities Troy Aikman and Deion Sanders for Bridgestone, and pop-music group Pussycat Dolls in one of two spots for GoDaddy.com.
Super Bowl XLVI is slated for broadcast on February 5 on NBC.
Links:
[1] http://www.usatoday.com/money/advertising/story/2012-01-02/super-bowl-ads-sell-out/52342052/1