Yahoo Signs Up More Than 30 Advertisers For Sunday's Live Stream Of Bills-Jaguars

Yahoo has signed more than 30 advertisers for Sunday’s global online streaming of the Bills-Jaguars game from London, representing one of the largest collection of sponsors ever assembled for a live sports stream. Dairy Queen has signed as the pregame show sponsor, while Toyota will be the title sponsor for the game’s halftime show. Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer on a company earnings call earlier this week said the inventory for the game had sold out, though industry sources said positions still were available this week at discount prices. Sources said rates fell from initial asking prices of around $200,000 to around $50,000 per 30 seconds. After initially not providing viewer guarantees, Yahoo is believed to be guaranteeing some advertisers a minimum of 3.5 million U.S streams. Advertisers had an ability to choose either a global or U.S.-only audience for its inventory. The game will serve as a key test case on the worldwide reach of the NFL on a non-TV platform, even with its relatively low-wattage matchup and non-traditional 9:30am ET start time for U.S. audiences. “We’re thrilled to have some of the world’s top brands working with Yahoo to engage NFL fans around this historic live stream,” said Yahoo Chief Revenue Officer Lisa Utzschneider. Yahoo is responsible for 96% of the ad inventory, with the NFL retaining a standard 4%.