Super Bowl

NEW YORK (AP) ― It's time for that annual winter ritual where people gather before their TV screens to whoop and holler as they gobble down unhealthy treats. Yes, it's Super Bowl time. And Sunday's NFL championship wouldn't be complete without a look at its uber-expensive advertising, which is priced at an all-time high.

On Friday, NBC, a unit of General Electric Co., said it was in talks to sell the last two of the 67 spots for the game, which have gone for between $2.4 million and $3 million per 30-second slot.

"Considering the state of the economy in the United States, we couldn't be any more thrilled," said Dick Ebersol, chairman of NBC Universal Sports & Olympics.

The Super Bowl remains the premier advertising event: It boasts a U.S. audience of 100 million, the biggest of any American telecast. It's also a marketer's dream: Viewers actually like watching the commercials.

This year, a few commercials will reflect the weak economy, but by and large, the ads aim to deliver glitz, guffaws and groans — like they do every year.

There will be celebrity appearances in ads, including Conan O'Brien for Bud Light, John Turturro for Heineken USA Inc. and Jason Statham for Audi of America Inc.

Animals will figure prominently again, with Anheuser-Busch's Clydesdales expected to appear in three of seven commercials from the Budweiser brewer. One is a tearjerker about a horse that joins the circus.

Internet domain registrar The Go Daddy Group Inc., will air a somewhat risque spot, as it has done in the past. While its less-than-slick ads that the company made itself, featuring racer Danica Patrick, are bound to make viewers groan, Go Daddy doesn't care. At least Go Daddy got approved. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals got steamed because NBC rejected its ad for vegetarianism that featured half-naked women playing with vegetables.

To be sure, such tempests are part of the marketing shenanigans surrounding the game. At the very least, it drives people online to watch the banned ad.

John Gerzema, chief insights officer at Y&R, a unit of advertising giant WPP Group PLC, said keeping the brand top of mind after the Super Bowl gets advertisers the most bang for the small fortune spent to buy air time.

A 30-second Super Bowl spot is about 20 times more expensive than the average commercial time on prime time network programs this time of year, according to TNS Media.

As such, "the Super Bowl is a colossal waste of money if you can't integrate your events around it," Gerzema said. The key is to "quickly move from the TV screen to the Internet."

Anheuser-Busch gets it. It created a social media Web site at AB-extras.com that features the stories behind its Super Bowl ads with pictures, videos and interviews.

Monster Worldwide Inc., a job-search company, is linking with the NFL to hire a "Director of Fandemonium" from a base of regular fans. It has a signing bonus of $100,000 and the new hire has one year to appear in promotional events. Monster also started marketing through social networking sites and bought search engine keywords like "fandemonium" for the ad campaign. It bought two ad spots on the Super Bowl.

"At the end of the day, we want to drive traffic to the site," said Ted Gilvar, Monster's global marketing officer. "It's not just airing the spots and waiting."

Here are some Super Bowl advertising highlights.

• The old reliables:

Marquee names that return year after year include Anheuser-Busch. This year, the brewer's ads will play up its American identity. That's timely given that the company was bought last year by Belgium's InBev SA for $52 billion. In a Clydesdale ad, one of the horses looks back at its ancestry. The ad with O'Brien depicts the late-night host reluctantly signing up to star in a commercial touting Bud Light in Sweden, with hilarious results.

PepsiCo Inc. is a longtime advertiser but this year it has a first for the Super Bowl. The company's SoBe Life Water division will have a 60-second commercial in 3-D, featuring its ultra-hip lizards. SoBe also is partnering with DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. to give away more than 125 million 3-D glasses for a 90-second sneak preview of "Monsters vs. Aliens," which hits theaters March 27. (Glasses are available at SoBe displays in retail stores.)

Coca-Cola Co. will put Troy Polamalu of the Pittsburgh Steelers in an ad touting Coke Zero called "Mean Troy," reprising a 1979 classic that starred another Steeler, "Mean" Joe Greene. The company's other spots include "Avatar," in which people morph to resemble their digital alter egos, and "Heist," in which insects steal a sleeping man's Coke.

• Economy-related advertisers:

Ads from job-listings companies CareerBuilder.com and Monster, which has redesigned its Web site for the first time in more than a decade, are appropriate given the high unemployment rate. One Monster ad shows folks working in jobs for which they're not particularly suited. CareerBuilder.com's ad features a koala bear and a co-worker in a Speedo.

"We know there are a lot of people out there who are feeling anxious about the job market," said Richard Castellini, CareerBuilder's chief marketing officer, in a statement.

• The Super Bowl newbies:

GE will air a 30-second ad about efficient and sustainable technologies for delivering electricity. The spot features a scarecrow and a modern adaptation of the "The Wizard of Oz" song "If I Only Had A Brain."

Denny's plans a spot called "Thugs" that makes fun of the breakfasts served at rival restaurants compared to its hefty Grand Slam.

Mars Inc.'s Pedigree pet foods unit will air an ad about pet adoption featuring some exotic pets. It's already available on YouTube.

H&R Block is returning to the Super Bowl after five years, and this time, it's got Abe Vigoda. The "Barney Miller" actor will play the character of Death — along the lines that nothing is certain except death and taxes.

Super Bowl XLIII Sneak Peak At 2009 Ads:

Pedigree Dog Food - Get A Dog
G.E. - Scarecrow
SOBE Lifewater - Football Players
Dreamworks - Aliens Vs Monsters
Pepsi Max - Monkey Spot
Pepsi Max - "I'm Good"
Pepsi Max - Diet Cola For Men

Below is a look back at what won eyeballs for advertisers during the past two Super Bowl broadcasts...

Super Bowl XLII Ads From 2008:

Chase - Secret Agent
"Drillbit Taylor" Movie
AT&T Monkey Trip
Dell - "Would I Be Pretty?"
Bud Light - Ability To Breathe Fire
Audi - "Godfather" Spoof
Diet Pepsi Max - "What Is Love?"
SalesGenie.com
Bud Light - Wine And Cheese
Under Armour Shoes
Bridgestone - Screaming Squirrel
Doritos - New Musicians
"Wanted" Movie
G2 Gatorade - Derek Jeter
GoDaddy.com - Danica Patrick
Dell - Red PCs
Cars.com - Ring Of Fire
Tide-To-Go Talking Stain
Budweiser - Clydesdale "Rocky"
"Iron Man" Movie
Toyota Corolla - Ferocious Badgers
"Leatherheads" Movie
Garmin - Napoleon
CareerBuilder.com - Heart Not In It?
SoBe - Lizards Get Down
Anti-Drug Campaign
GMC Hybrid - Never Say Never
Bud Light - Accents
"The Chronicles Of Narnia - Prince Caspian" Movie
Planters Cashews - Unibrow
T-Mobile - Charles Barkley's Fave 5
United Way - Tom Brady
Pepsi Stuff - Justin Timberlake
Quit Plan - Dad And Daughter's Movie
Doritos - Mouse Trap
IdeaCast - Looking For Ted
Ford - Swap Your Ride
Famous Dave's - Slo-Mo Eating
NFL Network - Get Your Story Straight
Dairy Queen - Popcorn Shrimp
Toshiba - HD DVDs
Cargill - Where's Roxanne?
Jimmy John's - Food To The Rescue
Zantac - Changing Everything
"Semi-Pro" Movie
Claritin - Stay Clear
Cars.com - Shrinking Heads
SalesGenie.com - Pandas
Vitamin Water - Jockey Shaq
Ice Breakers Gum - Carmen Electra
Bridgestone - Richard Simmons
Bud Light - Inventing The Wheel
CareerBuilder.com - Wish Fairy
Hyundai Genesis - Curve Road
"Wall-E" Movie
"Jumper" Movie
E*Trade Financial - Baby: "I Just Bought Stock"
Bud Light - Ability To Fly
NFL - Super Ad
Harmony - The Remote And Your Dad
Comcast - Bad Boyfriend
Arby's - I Love You
Harmony - Why Do You Need More Than 1 Remote?
Sunsilk - Life Can't Wait
Coca-Cola - Battle Of The Balloons
Coca-Cola - Political Friends
Toyota Sequoia - Big Wheel Race
"You Don't Mess With The Zohan" Movie
E*Trade Financial - Baby Rents A Clown
Taco Bell - Fiesta Platters
Gatorade - Dog Drinking
Bud Light - Jackie Moore From "Semi-Pro" Movie
Hyundai - Genesis
Victoria's Secret - This Game's Over Soon
Amp Energy Drink - "Jump Start"
Overstock.com - On The Move

Super Bowl XLI Ads From 2007:

Blockbuster - "Total Acess"
Bud Light - "Slap Happy"
Bud Light - "No Speak English"
Bud Light - "Rock vs. Paper"
Bud Light - "Crab"
Budweiser - "Dalmation For A Day"
Bud Light - "Speed Wedding"
CareerBuilder - "Promotion"
Cheverlot - "It's Getting Hot In Here"
Chevrolet - "Medley"
Coca-Cola - "Video Game"
Coca-Cola - "Vending Machine Fantasy"
Doritos - "Check Out Girl"
Doritos - "Duct Tape"
Doritos - "Chip Lover's Dream"
Doritos - "Live The Flavor"
Doritos - "Mousetrap"
Dunkin Donuts - "Maple Sandwich"
E*Trade - "Bank Robbery"
FedEx - "Space Delivery"
Footlocker - "Love The Sneaker"
Frito-Lay - "Enjoy The Game"
Garmin - "Champion Of Navigation"
GM - "Robot"
GoDaddy.com - "Advertising"
Honda - "Trucks"
CBS Late Show's "David Letterman and Oprah"
Nationwide Insurance - "Life Comes At You Fast" with Kevin Federline
Sierra Mist - "In Traction"
Sierra Mist - "Karate School"
Snapple - "Mountaintop Answer"
Sierra Mist's "Comb-Over"
Salesgenie.com's "Work Smart"
Snickers - "Do Something Manly"
Schick Quattro - "Razor Testing"
Sprint Nextel - "Connectile Dysfunction"
Toyota - "Tundra"
Revlon - "No Fade Tour"

(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)