On Saturday, the NFL’s current Pro Bowl stars were given the unique opportunity to play in what was expected by many to be the last Pro Bowl ever played. Following the abysmal effort from players in the exhibition last year, coupled with a strict warning from Commissioner Roger Goodell that the Pro Bowl’s future would be decided this year, the portents were not looking kind for the event, which was first played back in 1939.

Although many expected the Pro Bowl to write its own eulogy, the viewing public were treated to a surprising compelling game, and the players could well have done enough to breathe life into an event that was all but on the scrapheap.

Both teams displayed considerable effort given the circumstances, and could have found a comfortable ‘middle ground’ which could see the Pro Bowl remain a feature on the NFL calendar.

A perfect example of this was evident when Denver Broncos defensive end Elvis Dumervil had a big blindside hit lined up on Drew Brees, but pulled out of it, seemingly remembering where he was as he got closer to the quarterback. Protecting the quarterback in a game such as this seems fair, especially when you consider the defensive hustle that was shown throughout the game (by this I mean tackles were made, an odd sight in recent Pro Bowls).

The game also featured its madder moments, not least so the inclusion of JJ Watt as a wide receiver at one point, but to the Pro Bowl detractors, let’s not forget that this is an end of season showpiece – If you can’t do the crazy here, where can you?

One of the most resounding arguments for keeping the Pro Bowl was surely made by Peyton Manning and Jeff Saturday. Manning and Saturday played together for the majority of their careers in Indianapolis, and following Saturday’s recent retirement announcement, the NFC center was allowed to snap the ball one last time to the AFC’s Manning. It was a poignant moment, and if Goodell does end up scrapping the Pro Bowl, it was a fitting moment for the exhibition to go out on.

It will inevitably, if unfairly, be compared to the NBA’s ‘All Star Weekend’ which far exceeds it in popularity and effort displayed by its players (the joys of a non-contact sport). However, could the Pro Bowl learn something from its round-balled cousin?

All Star Weekend is littered with extra events that all lead up to the All Star game, such as the three-point shootout, slam dunk competition, and a celebrity game, all of which contribute to the success of the weekend. It is difficult to imagine similar events at the Pro Bowl, with perhaps the exception of a highly appealing quarterback shootout, but it is something which Goodell could consider to help rejuvenate the event.

Unfortunate, it is unlikely that we will ever see a Pro Bowl competed for with the intensity that the players play with in the NFL. Due to the money these players risk losing if they suffer a serious injury, sensibility will always cause them to reel in their efforts.

In the world of Rugby Union, the Barbarians invitational side play with passion and effort abound, despite the fact the players are at just as much risk of injury as those in the Pro Bowl. There is however a large disparity in earnings, and most rugby players also have guaranteed contracts, meaning that all but the most serious injuries should have little to no affect on the players’ earnings.

With the Super Bowl, Free Agency, Combine and Draft all looming on the horizon, anxiety over Goodell’s decision in regards to the Pro Bowl will be very low. This essentially has left many with decidedly mixed feelings over the Pro Bowl. It is a nice event to have, but if Goodell does decide to do away with it, I certainly won’t lose any sleep over it.

Image Courtesy : NFL

The article The Pro Bowl Lives to Fight Another Day appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Kantar Video, a division of WPP’s insight, information, and consultancy network, Kantar, has released the results of a comprehensive study of online video viewership and social activity from Super Bowl XLVI advertisements. The study finds that within the first 3 days, the top 10 ads created $862,000 on average in earned video impressions, a 12.7% return on the cost of a Super Bowl ad spot.

Overall, this year’s ads have created over $11 million in earned media and saw a 267% increase in viewership over last year’s Super Bowl. This increase in online video viewership underlines the increasing trend for advertisers to use the Super Bowl as a launch-pad for multi-platform commercial campaigns.

Key takeaways include:

• Return on Format: Longer ads create more value
  Longer ads posted online offered much higher value to advertisers, as it extends the amount of time a consumer is exposed to their brand from a :30-:60 second commercial to upwards of two minutes or more, lowering estimated effective CPM. These ads also generated more viewership and discussion on average.
• Return on Strategy: Pre-game strategies help, but the Super Bowl “Bounce” rewards creative
  Over $2 million worth of earned viewership was created before the game even began, spurred by early releasing strategies and bolstered by media outreach, seeding and paid advertising. However, the Super Bowl “bounce” truly benefited the ads with the most popular creative executions. Over four times as much earned media value was created after the game with the most buzzed about ads topping the list.
• Return on Creative: Generic themes offered stronger brand association than celebrities
  Looking specifically at the automotive category, which commanded the most pre- and post- game viewership, thematic use of  vampires and dogs with Volkswagen and Audi generated more recall in discussion versus ads featuring celebrities. While celebrities help create buzz, a strong execution around an idea that is central to a brand drives engagement and may serve as a more sustainable concept as campaigns continue throughout the year.

“The incredible power of online video is on display this year offering an even greater return on investment for Super Bowl advertisers,” said Bill Lederer, CEO of Kantar Video. “This evolution to multi-platform campaigns is creating a whole new layer of value to brands and audiences making the advertisements an even bigger part of this annual event.”

The study, which leverages the Videolytics platform tracked viewership and social metrics (comments, favorites, ratings) generated on leading video distribution sites online through proprietary media identification technology. It also included engagement and recall analysis from the Videolytics Social platform.

The study, which began the week before the Super Bowl, seeks out patterns and trends that have impact on advertisers’ campaigns. These results are based on data through Thursday, February 9, 2012.

Image Courtesy of   https://www.facebook.com/newyorkgiants

The article Top 10 Super Bowl Ads Return 113% of Media Investment appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

It’s been a record breaking week for Madonna.  Along with the largest halftime US viewership in Super Bowl history including Madonna’s Bridgestone Halftime performance (peaking at 112.6 million viewers), the pre-orders for the Material Girl’s upcoming MDNA album ascended to the top spot on iTunes stores in 50 countries and was the largest one day pre-order of any album in iTunes history, it was confirmed on February 8 by her record label Interscope.  Commented Madonna, “Thanks for all the L-U-V!! from around the world.”

A key part of the album release included a first of its kind worldwide promotion by Clear Channel, a leading global media and entertainment company, which premiered Madonna’s highly anticipated new single and video, “Give Me All Your Luvin’,” across its full range of media platforms, including radio, outdoor, online and mobile on Friday, February 3.

As part of the campaign, Clear Channel used extensive on-air and online promotions to drive listeners and Madonna fans to iTunes, where they could buy the new single and pre-order MDNA, scheduled to be released globally March 26.

Below are some of the astounding numbers that add up for Madonna this past week.

MADONNA BY THE NUMBERS:

SUPER BOWL BY THE NUMBERS:

MADONNA BY THE LETTERS:

Image Courtesy of   DSPA / Shutterstock.com

The article Madonna’s Super Bowl Performance is a Record Breaker appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

The USA TODAY Facebook Super Bowl Ad Meter winner has been announced and Doritos “Sling Baby” came out on top for 2012. The ad features a grandmother who creates a way to sling her grandson – with a rubber band-like setup – across the yard to grab a Doritos bag from a taunting boy.  The Facebook community rated the ad a 4.33 (on a scale of 1 to 5 stars).

The top five ads chosen by the Facebook community and their score:

• Doritos – Sling Baby – 4.33
• Bud Light – Weego – 4.25
• Kia – A Dream Car. For Real Life. – 4.23
• Chrysler – It’s Halftime In America – 4.23
• M&Ms – Ms. Brown/Just My Shell – 4.22

In the event of a ratings tie, higher rank goes to the ad that received the larger number of votes.

The USA TODAY Facebook Super Bowl Ad meter voting was open to Facebook’s more than 800 million global users. Facebook users could view, rate and share all the national ads that aired during the game.  Voting began right after the first ad aired during the Super Bowl on Sunday night and continued until 6:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday. Complete results can be found at admeter.usatoday.com and facebook.com/sports as well as in Wednesday’s print editions of USA TODAY.

Created in 1989 to gauge consumers’ opinions about television’s most expensive commercials, Ad Meter and has been a subject of great consumer interest and conversation over the years. The 2012 USA TODAY Facebook Super Bowl Ad Meter combines the industry authority of USA TODAY with the social engagement of Facebook.

With the rise of social media as a tool for consumers to voice, share and discover topics of conversation, this year’s collaboration between USA TODAY and Facebook for Ad Meter 2012 is an evolution of how America discusses and rates ads during and after the Super Bowl, one of the most popular ad spend days of the year.

The article Doritos’ “Sling Baby” Wins USA TODAY Facebook Super Bowl Ad Meter Votes appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

British rapper M.I.A. has been criticised by a parental advocacy group after she made a gesture with her middle finger during a live broadcast of the Superbowl last Sunday.

M.I.A., the stage name of Mathangi “Maya” Arulpragasam, was in the middle of performing alongside Nicki Minaj and Madonna during the globally-televised sports event’s half-time show when the incident occurred. During the track ‘Give Me All Your Luvin”, M.I.A. raised her middle finger, however, her finger was not blurred out by broadcaster NBC due to the fact that it “occurred too quickly for its technical system to catch“.

Still, the Parents Television Council (PTC) has publicly criticised both NBC and M.I.A. for this event taking place in the first place. The organisation’s President, Tim Winter, had the following to say:

NBC fumbled and the NFL lied because a performer known as M.I.A. felt it necessary to flip off millions of families. It is unfortunate that a spectacular sporting event was overshadowed once again by broadcasting the selfish acts of a desperate performer … They chose a lineup full of performers who have based their careers on shock, profanity and titillation. Instead of preventing indecent material, they enabled it. M.I.A. used a middle finger shamelessly to bring controversial attention to herself, while effectively telling an audience filled with children, ‘F– you.’”

The PTC made further accusations toward the organisers’ culpability in this event, noting that as recently as last week the PTC had been informed that making the Super Bowl’s half-time show ‘appropriate’ would be a priority. The PTC concluded their statement on the matter by insisting:

The mechanism NBC had in place to catch this type of material completely failed, and the network cannot say it was caught off guard…

Their closing comment alludes to a well-publicised incident at the 2004 Super Bowl half-time show in which singer Janet Jackson’s breast was briefly exposed during an onstage performance with Justin Timberlake. CBS, the broadcaster of the Super Bowl that year, received a $550,000 fine from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and resulted in a significant increase in the number of complaints and fines received and issued, respectively, by the FCC.

The 2004 Super Bowl had an estimated 87.79 million viewers in the United States alone, while this year’s event was broadcast is said to have garnered 111.3 million viewers – making it the most-watched television show in U.S. history. As a result, M.I.A.’s gesture has the potential to incite an even greater public outcry, especially in light of the revelation that during the Super Bowl, a record-breaking 12,333 tweets per second were sent out about the event.

The article M.I.A.’s Middle Finger Sparks PTC Super Bowl Furore appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Madonna, a multi Grammy Award-winning Universal Records recording artist, will perform in the Bridgestone Super Bowl XLVI Halftime Show on NBC at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Sunday, February 5, the NFL and NBC announced during Sunday Night Football game between the New Orleans Saints and Detroit Lions. Madonna’s performance will be imagined by Cirque du Soleil and Jamie King.

The Bridgestone Super Bowl halftime show is the most-watched musical event of the year. More than 162 million viewers in the U.S. watched last year’s show. The Super Bowl and halftime show will be broadcast worldwide. Madonna joins an esteemed list of recent halftime acts that includes The Black Eyed Peas, The Who, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Prince, the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney and U2.

A world class entertainer, singer, songwriter, producer, director and video visionary, Madonna has sold more than 300 million records in the course of her three decade career as The Material Girl. She is a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee. Her last tour was the most successful tour by a solo artist in history.

Madonna is currently in the recording studio working on a new album scheduled to be released next year. Her new film W.E. which she directed, wrote and produced is opening in a limited one week release December 9 in Los Angeles and will open nationally on February 3, two days prior to Super Bowl XLVI.

Madonna has partnered with a creative team from Cirque du Soleil, Jamie King, and multimedia artists from Moment Factory, to create a signature performance for the Bridgestone Super Bowl XLVI Halftime Show. This year marks the fifth time Bridgestone Americas has sponsored the Super Bowl halftime show. The tire company’s new brand campaign, fittingly titled “Time to Perform,” will debut during the game.

The Bridgestone Super Bowl XLVI Halftime Show is an NFL Network production and will be executive produced by Ricky Kirshner and directed by Hamish Hamilton.

photoproject.eu / Shutterstock.com

The article Madonna Lands Gig at Super Bowl Halftime Show appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.