Oscars 2022: How Much Does a Commercial Cost?
The 94th Academy Awards airs on ABC on March 27, 2022. And this year’s ceremony could be a pivotal one for Hollywood’s biggest night. With ratings continually on the decline in recent years, all eyes are on the 2022 Oscars for some sign of what the future might hold for the awards show. For instance, fans might be wondering how much it costs advertisers to land a commercial during the 94th Academy Awards.
The Academy Awards ceremony hopes to rebuild in 2022
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences – the organization behind the Academy Awards – has been at the center of controversy in recent years. Most recently, the Oscars made the heavily criticized decision to present several awards during their off-air portion of the ceremony. The idea is that highlights from these awards will be edited into the telecast later. But will that help the Academy Awards recapture an audience with dwindling interest?
According to Variety, the 2021 Oscars drew only 10.4 million viewers. That’s a 56 percent drop from the previous year — when 23.6 million viewers tuned in — and the smallest audience on record. Once upon a time, the Academy Awards was among the most-watched live events each year. But with smaller movies garnering most of the awards, many assumed this was the reason behind the declining ratings. Enter this year’s fan-favorite movie award.
How much does it cost to air a commercial during the Oscars?
Despite all the trouble the academy has had, Variety reports that ABC has sold all 60 available commercial slots for the 2022 Oscars. Last year, the event brought in $115.3 million in advertising revenue. That total marks a 10.7 percent drop from 2020’s $129.2 million. But it doesn’t seem to have hurt ad sales too much for 2022 Oscars. After all, Disney – which owns ABC – has secured commercial in 14 different marketing categories.
A 30-second ad reportedly went for somewhere between $1.7 million and $2.2 million. While that might seem encouraging, Rita Ferro, president of Disney Advertising Sales, acknowledged to Variety that more ads than normal were sold during the “scatter” market. Translation: advertisers waited until closer to the Oscar telecast to buy ads rather than purchasing them in advance. With everything the Oscars is facing with COVID-19, that’s not a good sign.
Which companies will advertise during the 2022 Academy Awards?
The 2022 Oscars might not have the allure the Academy Awards once carried. But a variety of high-profile advertisers still stepped up to take advantage of the event to promote their companies. Among the 2022 commercials will be Pfizer, Rolex, Verizon, and Crypto.com, the first cryptocurrency company to advertise during the Oscars.
And in keeping with the increasingly prominence of companies like Netflix at the Oscars, several advertisers will be looking to promote their streaming services. CNN Plus – a new subscription-based service launching the same week as the awards – has a 30-second ad on the show. Likewise, Discovery Plus, Disney+, Paramount Plus, and Peacock have ads in the queue.
