Americans Geared Up for “Ad Bowl” 2005

Most Americans Are Ready to Put the “Wardrobe Malfunction” Behind Them

RESTON, Va., Feb. 4, 2005 – ComscoreQ2, the survey research division of Comscore Networks, today released the results of a survey of more than 1,500 Americans’ attitudes and opinions related to Super Bowl XXXIX. More than half of those surveyed reported their favorite aspect of the Super Bowl is either the advertisements run during the game or spending time with friends and family rather than the game itself. When asked which company’s ad they most looked forward to, the vast majority of consumers chose Anheuser-Busch.

More Than Just a Game
More than 34 percent of men and 68 percent of women say they enjoy either the game-day ads or the opportunity to spend time with their friends and family more than they do the game itself. Women were more than twice as likely as men (38 percent vs. 18 percent) to report that the ads are their favorite aspect of the Super Bowl. More than three-quarters (76 percent) of respondents plan to watch the game from their homes, while 19 percent will watch from a friend or family member’s house and 5 percent will enjoy the game from a bar or restaurant.

Note: Columns may not add to 100% due to rounding

Budweiser Is a Heavy Favorite
When asked to select which three brand advertisements they most look forward to seeing, fully 80 percent of survey respondents chose Budweiser/Bud Light. Nearly 64 percent of consumers chose Pepsi/Diet Pepsi, while McDonald’s finished in third with 19 percent.

Consumers’ high expectations for Budweiser’s Super Bowl advertising is clearly a function of their affinity with past years’ ads; two out of three consumers said Budweiser was last year’s most memorable advertiser. In addition, almost 50 percent of consumers picked the first “Budweiser Frogs” advertisement from 1995 as their favorite Super Bowl ad of all time (from a list of ten well-known ads). The 1993 McDonald’s ad featuring Michael Jordan and Larry Bird playing “horse” and making seemingly impossible shots took second place, with nearly 8 percent of votes. Budweiser also took third place (7 percent), with its 2001 ad featuring Cedric the Entertainer accidentally soaking his date with a shaken-up beer.

Most Americans Would Like to Forget Last Year’s “Wardrobe Malfunction”
Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of Americans believe that Anheuser-Busch made the right decision in not running an ad spoofing Janet Jackson’s now infamous “wardrobe malfunction.” Moreover, the majority of respondents believed the FCC either acted appropriately or not harshly enough in fining CBS $550,000 for the incident. Perhaps unsurprisingly, men were significantly more likely to say that the FCC overreacted to the Janet Jackson incident. Forty-eight percent of men said the FCC overreacted, compared to 41 percent of women; conversely, 50 percent of women say the FCC handled the incident appropriately, compared to just 38 percent of men.

Note: Columns may not add to 100% due to rounding

More Than 60 Percent of Americans Believe the Patriots Will Take Home the Vince Lombardi Trophy
Nearly 62 percent of survey respondents with an opinion on the matter believe the New England Patriots will win their third Super Bowl in the last four years. More than 45 percent of respondents think Tom Brady will take home back-to-back Most Valuable Player awards, while his counterpart on the Eagles, Donovan McNabb, is favored as MVP by 26 percent of survey takers. One-third of respondents plan to take an active role in selecting this year’s MVP by voting online or through cellular phone text messages.

To request the full results of the Comscore Super Bowl Survey, please send an e-mail to press@comscore.com.

About Comscore Networks
Comscore Networks provides unparalleled insight into consumer behavior and attitudes. This capability is based on a massive, global cross-section of more than 2 million consumers who have given Comscore explicit permission to confidentially capture their browsing and transaction behavior, including online and offline purchasing. Comscore panelists also participate in survey research that captures and integrates their attitudes and intentions. Through its patent-pending technology, Comscore measures what matters across a broad spectrum of behavior and attitudes. Comscore consultants apply this deep knowledge of customers and competitors to help clients design powerful marketing strategies and tactics that deliver superior ROI. Comscore services are used by global leaders such as AOL, Yahoo!, Verizon, Best Buy, The Newspaper Association of America, Tribune Interactive, ESPN, Nestlé, Bank of America, Universal McCann, the United States Postal Service, GlaxoSmithKline and Orbitz. For more information, please visit www.comscore.com.

Press
Bill Daddi
Daddi Brand Communications
646-370-1341
press@comscore.com