Commercials Outweigh the Game

Sunday night was a satisfying night for Pittsburgh fans as the Steelers won Super Bowl XLIII in the final two minutes of the game. But that wasn't the only exciting part of the evening. As always, Super Bowl commercials were just as important as the game itself.

Reuters reports that NBC Sports took in a record amount of $206 million in ad revenue during Sunday night's broadcast. An extra $55 million was brought in during the pre- and post-game shows, generating a total amount of $261 million for the full day.

The network was able to achieve these record-making amounts despite the current economic troubles facing the nation.

There are viewers who tune into the hype every year solely for the commercials, so the ads have a lot riding on them. Since the viewership for these commercials is so high, they are more important and more expensive. MSNBC reports that a 30-second spot during this year's game cost as much as $3 million.

The Los Angeles Times records some of the best commercials of the night, noting Careerbuilder.com as easily the best and the Doritos ad as the first laugh out loud moment of the night. Some of the worst include a spot for Kellogg's Frosted Flakes, Castrol Oil and Bud Light.