Disney Advertising has sold all inventory for Sunday night’s Oscar telecast on ABC, but with pricing slightly down from 2022 levels.
The company sought between $1.6 million and $2.1 million for 30 seconds of airtime, which is down by a low-single-digit percentage from last year’s range, according to a person familiar with the negotiations.
For the past several years, viewership for the leading awards broadcast has been hit by Covid as well as a period of uncertainty for the movie business in general and lower tune-in for all prime-time linear programming. Despite the downward trend in live viewing outside of sports, which has finally hurt award shows after years of resilience, about two-thirds of the Oscar ad inventory was bought in the upfront marketplace. As the scatter sales was unfolding, the ad sector was moving through a difficult period, with advertisers across the media and tech sectors pulling back the throttle.
RELATED: Best Picture Oscar Winners Through The Years – Photo Gallery
Sunday’s show will have a broad spectrum of brand presence spread across 15 categories. Along with Disney’s own movie studio, ad buyers include Warner Bros, Sony, Universal and Paramount+.
“This Sunday, we’re going to deliver an unforgettable night of television. Our sponsors showed up in full force, across every major category with new and custom creative, joining a spectacular evening celebrating the biggest achievements in storytelling and the moments that bring us together,” said Rita Ferro, president, Disney Advertising, in a press release. “The Oscars is a cultural phenomenon at the center of creativity and entertainment – and with Jimmy Kimmel back at the helm as host, our all-star production team is set to bring the magical night to movie fans, everywhere.”
RELATED: Best Actor Oscar Winners Through The Years – Photo Gallery
In a world of declining linear viewership, the Oscars are still seen as a rare commodity, with Disney citing ample evidence of the upside for ad buyers. One stat from measurement firm EDO, for example, indicates that advertisers last year saw a 49% boost in search engagement rate compared with the average telecast. It would take almost nine ad exposures in primetime entertainment to match the search impact of a single ad in the Oscars, Disney said.
RELATED: Best Actress Oscar Winners Through The Years – Photo Gallery