That $4.5 million price tag for a Super Bowl ad sounds like a steal now that NBC, with 114.4 million people tuning in, was the broadcaster of the most-watched show in U.S. television history.
The linear numbers topped last year’s Super Bowl by 2.2 million viewers, and this due in large part to the storylines surrounding both teams. While sporting events and award shows are continuing to see year-over-year increases and all-time highs, this year’s Super Bowl may have been the peak. This is not because there won’t be growing interests in games, but rather there are more ways in which to watch.
Record-breaking linear numbers were complemented by record-breaking consumption numbers for the live stream on ‘NBC Sports Live Extra.’ 2.5 million unique viewers tuned in on desktop, mobile, and tablet – up 9% compared to FOX’s stream last year and up 19% compared to NBC’s live stream in 2012 (also the first-ever live stream of the Super Bowl).
“The Super Bowl stream on the NBC Sports Live Extra platform went fantastically well,” said Rick Cordella, SVP and General Manager, Digital Media, NBC Sports Group. “We were excited, not only by the record-breaking consumption, but also the quality of the streams we delivered to football fans.”