Fox is "isolating" the scheduled ads for both President Trump and Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg during Super Bowl LIV so other game advertisers "won't appear in the same commercial breaks as the politicians," according to sources cited by Jeanine Poggi of AD AGE. Fox instead "will air promos for its own programming" alongside Trump and Bloomberg's commercials. A source said that Trump is "expected to run his ad earlier in the game," and Bloomberg's ad is "said to be airing during halftime." Poggi wrote it seems like Fox "will try to protect Super Bowl advertisers from appearing near these political ads as best as possible" (ADAGE.com, 1/19). McCann Chair & CEO Harris Diamond said that clients, including Verizon and Microsoft, are "discussing the impact of political commercials and their effect on pre-game and post-game media conversations." Diamond said that marketers are "voicing concerns about what happens if their ad appears just after a controversial commercial for Trump or Bloomberg, which could immediately overshadow their marketing efforts." Diamond said, "Placement is going to be very important" (NBCNEWS.com, 1/18).
GOOD SERVICE: AD AGE's George Slefo noted Verizon on Friday confirmed it "will be returning to the Super Bowl" this year, marking its "third consecutive appearance at the Big Game." The company "has yet to release its 60-second Super Bowl commercial." But it said that the spot "will air during the first half of the game." Until then, Verizon is airing a total of three commercials to "build momentum for its forthcoming campaign, which once again thanks first responders." For the first time, Verizon will "turn the spotlight on 5G technology, demonstrating how 5G can potentially save lives." The first two spots appeared during yesterday's conference championship games, and the third pre-Super Bowl commercial "will air" during the Pro Bowl on Sunday. Meanwhile, AT&T confirmed that it has "no plans surrounding the Super Bowl this year." Verizon's continued focus on first responders "shouldn't come as a surprise, as the company serves an overwhelming number of government agencies" (ADAGE.com, 1/17).
