It’s that time of year again where most people who didn’t follow college basketball all season tune in, when whole offices and groups of friends fill out tournament brackets, and when the NCAA makes a billion dollars. No that’s not a typo, according to a new study done by Kantar Media, last year from March 13th to April 2nd the NCAA had generated 1 billion dollars in ad sales revenue (this does not include the digital ad sales of 67million dollars). The figure is staggering when you compare it to other sporting events. It was higher than the entire NFL post season ad revenue (976.3 million), NBA post season (536.9 million), and MLB playoffs (354.1 million).
The advertisements range from ladders (Werner), cars (Chevy, Ford, Toyota), and cell phones (At&T, Verizon). I can see why advertisers are drawn to March Madness. During the short time span of four to five weeks, people from all walks of life watch the games. Many in including myself won’t even watch full games but the last five minutes of the game (since that’s where a lot of the drama unfolds). The amazing thing is how so many people watch teams that they have no affiliation what so ever with! All it takes is one good finish and most of us are hooked. Buzzer-beaters, overtime, and three pointers all keep the audience coming back for more. Which is exactly what advertisers want, however many feel the tournament is being inundated with advertisements and now every segment has a sponsor attached to it. I do admit advertisements are annoying, but a lot of them I don’t even notice. For example, “HD viewing is brought to you today by HP.” Only when I saw this highlighted by the John Oliver rant on HBO did I notice the ad placement. So I think for now the adds are tolerable and help not only the NCAA but the companies who advertise as well.
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