Bakish says broadcast will be showcase for company’s programs; Game airs on CBS, Nickelodeon and Paramount+ streaming service
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| Bob Bakish | Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg |
Paramount Global Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Bob Bakish predicts this weekend’s Super Bowl broadcast on CBS will set records for advertising sales and viewers.
“We set the high-water mark for ad sales for a Super Bowl, and it’s looking like on Sunday we’ll set an all-time viewing number with any luck,” the executive said Friday (Feb. 9) on Bloomberg TV.
Fox Corp., last year’s host, took in about $500 million in Super Bowl ads sales, including pregame and postgame coverage, the company said at the time. For this year’s game, the price for a 30-second commercial is about $7 million, similar to 2023. In addition to CBS, the game will be simulcast on the Nickelodeon kids network and the Paramount+ streaming service.
The game will include a new ad for Paramount+, a new campaign for the company’s Pluto TV ad-supported video service and a spot for the company’s new biographical film Bob Marley: One Love, as well for Paramount+ and Nickelodeon's upcoming movie, The Thundermans Return.
“We’re using the Super Bowl as a showcase for Paramount Global,” Bakish said.
Kickoff in the matchup between the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers is set for 6:30 p.m. New York time, though the network plans a full day of coverage around the game.
Live sports, and the NFL in particular, have remained the one reliable tool for marketers to reach large numbers of viewers on TV. The Super Bowl, regularly the most watched event, has particular appeal because families and friends gather and discuss the ads. That’s why Hershey Co. bought a spot for a new version of its Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups with caramel.
“There’s very few things that are appointment viewing,” Ryan Riess, Hershey’s vice president of brand strategy and creative, said in an interview. “When we have a product that’s winner, we say, ‘Let’s tell 120 million viewers all at once.’”
Last year’s game drew a TV audience of 115.1 million.
L’Oreal SA bought the first-ever spot for its NYX makeup brand, while e.l.f. Beauty Inc. is returning this year. Several confectionery and snack companies will be among the sponsors, including Peanut M&Ms, Drumstick ice cream and Nerds candies. Meanwhile, Ford Motor Co., General Motors Co. and Jeep are sitting out.
While the advertising inventory alloted for Sunday’s matchup was largely sold out before anyone knew Kansas City would return to vie for its second-straight Super Bowl win, singer Taylor Swift’s attendance at games to cheer on her boyfriend, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, has added excitement to the season.
“She is without a doubt incremental to audience on the NFL,” Bakish said. “She’s a great addition, widening the net of the NFL viewer even further.”
The broadcast comes at an opportune moment for Paramount. Its controlling shareholders, the Redstone family, are fielding offers for the company, whose assets include CBS, Paramount Pictures and a stable of cable TV channels.
Some sponsors may be taking advantage of the fact that Paramount plans to simulcast the game on multiple networks, including Nickelodeon.
“We’ll see a lot of brands that are popular across age groups,” said Dan Mouradian, senior vice president for global client solutions at Innovid, an ad measurement firm.
The ads carried on those three networks will be the same, with the exception of 15 spots in categories like beer and sports betting that aren’t appropriate for Nickelodeon viewers.
The mix of sponsors shifts from year to year. After peaking at 40% of spots in 2018, autos dropped to just 10% last year, according to data from iSpot.TV. Stellantis NV, the parent of Jeep, said the “challenging US automotive market” led the company to sit out this year’s game.
Other categories like cryptocurrencies and sports betting have ebbed as well. The online betting service FanDuel, a division of Flutter Entertainment Plc, returns this year with NFL legend Rob Gronkowski trying again to make a 25-yard field goal live. BetMGM bought its first Super Bowl spot.
Technology was the largest single category of sponsorship last year at 18% of total ad time, and it’s expected to be well represented this year.
To promote the idea that it can do more than just deliver dinner, DoorDash Inc. will give away products from all of the Super Bowl sponsors — from a dream vacation to tax preparation services — to a lucky winner of its sweepstakes.
To play, viewers will have to scan a QR code at the end of the company’s spot and then follow the steps to enter the contest, according to Kofi Amoo-Gottfried, DoorDash’s chief marketing officer.
“Getting people to engage with things is what drives memorability,” he said in an interview.
Such spots are part of an overall trend of companies looking to make their commercials more interactive, according to Tony Marlow, chief marketing officer at LG Ad Solutions, a unit of LG Electronics Inc. that places ads on smart TVs.
“Our star player for this year’s Super Bowl commercials will be the QR code,” he said.
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Originally published: February 11, 2024.
