Advertisers spent more for commercials on this year's Oscar broadcast than they did last year, but they apparently were less willing to pay the bucks for big-name Hollywood stars to appear in the ads that aired Sunday night.
The number of Oscar ads featuring celebrity endorsements plunged for the third straight year, representing just 4 percent of the ads during Sunday Academy Awards special on ABC, according to a study released yesterday by GreenLight, an advertising consultancy.
That's way down from 38 percent two years ago, and it's also down from 19 percent last year.
The reason? Money, for one.
With ad pricing for the ceremony up roughly 10 percent from last year, when the cost of a 30-second spot slipped to $1.3 million, advertisers may have been saving money by slicing stars from their budget to balance the higher Oscar price, says Greenlight.
But there was also the Tiger Woods factor: a growing reluctance on the part of advertisers to hire on a celebrity to endorse their products and then worry that he or she will get caught up in a headline-grabbing scandal.
Woods, the highest-paid sports figure of all time, was dropped by three sponsors after his private life became a very public circus over allegations of multiple extramarital affairs.
"Unlike the Grammys and Super Bowl where we saw a post-recession bounce in the use of celebrity, Oscar advertisers are possibly facing tighter budgets, being cautious following the Tiger Woods debacle, or falling back on other approaches,” says GreenLight vice president David Reeder.
To begin with, Oscar advertisers are more limited by Academy rules than the Grammys or Super Bowl regarding the use of stars. Oscar nominees cannot appear in advertisements that show on Oscar night, meaning Hyundai had to scramble to replace spokesperson Jeff Bridges in its voiceovers; Bridges was up for and won best actor for "Crazy Heart."
In place of celebrities, advertisers turned to hit songs to deliver their messages.
This year about 30 percent of advertisers adapted pop music to serve as soundtracks for the commercials, which is about the same share as last year. Bayer used the Veronicas, while J.C. Penney played the Sugababes.
But the music that resonated the most with viewers was heard in Apple's ad for its new iPad, says GreenLight.
"Sticking with its tried and true trend-setting formula, Apple debuted the first advertisement for its forthcoming iPad, airing a spot three times featuring 'There Goes My Love' by Danish indie group The Blue Van," says Reeder.
"The spot does a great job of showcasing the iPad, and you can't argue with Apple's success of picking trendy tunes by emerging artists."
