NBC Universal gets a record $6.5 million for 30-second Super Bowl ads

NBCUniversal, American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate corporation, owned by Comcast recently sold a 30-second advertisement for Super Bowl LIV for a record $6.5 million. A company executive also said that the company nearly sold out advertising slots for the upcoming Beijing Winter Olympics.

The executive further added that the $6.5 million includes same-sized investments in other NBC events such as the Winter Games. This amount marks an increase of 18% over what ViacomCBS-owned CBS charged for Super Bowl ads this year.

Dan Lovinger, the executive vice-president of advertising sales at NBC Sports Group said that the company has a “few ad units” left for the Super Bowl and is holding them back.

The official said that the advertising for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics is at “near sell-out levels.”

While the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics is set to being on February 4, the Super Bowl is set for February 13 and will be played at the same time as the Olympics.

As per Reuters reports, despite a decline in television audiences, live sporting events continue to attract people as viewing consumption becomes more ruptured.

The US viewership for the Summer Olympics in Tokyo dropped to about half the audience that was recorded during the London Games 2012. The Tokyo Olympics were delayed by a year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

This year’s Super Bowl LV broadcast on CBS in February failed to make a dent as it got only 92 million viewers, the lowest TV audience since 2006. This year, too, a 30-second ad sold for about $5.5 million. This amount was the same as the previous NFL title game.

The NFL still remains one of the most valuable properties in media. The NBC, in March, extended its rights to air “Sunday Night Football” in a new deal.

The new deal begins with the NFL 2023 season and runs through the 2033 season. It was valued at $2 billion per year.

This deal makes sure that NBC and Peacock streaming service will broadcast and stream Super Bowls in February 2026, February 2030 and February 2034.