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Wanna Advertise in the Super Bowl Next Year? There’s a Catch: You’ll Also Be Asked to Buy Ad Time on a Brand-New Cable Network

Jun 18, 2013  •  Post A Comment

To get one of the valuable ad slots in next year’s Super Bowl you’ll be asked to also buy some ad time in a brand-new cable network, reports our good friend Brian Steinberg in an exclusive story in Variety

Steinberg, who until recently was working at our sibling publication Ad Age, writes at his new home, Variety: "To get one of the valuable ad slots available during [Fox’s] broadcast of the Super Bowl in 2014, sponsors have been told they must buy time in other Fox Sports content, according to ad buyers — with emphasis placed on Fox Sports 1. The new [Fox Sports 1] is slated to launch August 17 in more than 90 million homes with more than 5,000 hours of programming that include broadcasts of college football, college basketball, NASCAR, soccer and UFC."

The article adds: " ‘For the past two years, in addition to buying a unit in the game, there has been a need to support other sports properties within a network’s respective media groups. A couple of years ago, NBC required it. Last year, CBS required it. And this year is no different,’ said one ad buyer with knowledge of the tone of Super Bowl ad talks. ‘Clearly, FS1 is a priority for [Fox],’ the buyer added."

Steinberg continues, "To be sure, Fox is open to the purchase of ad packages that do not include FS1, such as the Super Bowl pre-game show, this buyer said, but the emerging network is getting most of the spotlight in pitches to advertisers."

To read all of Steinberg’s insight into the selling of the 2014 Super Bowl, we urge you to click on the link in our first paragraph, above, and read the complete original story.

One Comment

  1. Fox Sports 1 is replacing the Speed Channel. So whatever subscriber base Speed had will more than likely carry over to Fox Sports 1. That subscriber base is around 81 million as of 2012.

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