Ads Enjoy High Viewing During Super Bowl

Rentrak analysis puts retention at 98.8%

By Jon Lafayette -- Broadcasting & Cable, 2/8/2011 1:25:11 PM

Super Bowl viewers stayed tuned during the commercials, according to a second-by-second analysis compiled by Rentrak.

Only slightly more than one percent of the audience watched less of the ads on average than the game itself, according to Rentrak, which said the game had a 98.82 Ad Retention Index.

Both viewing levels of the game and of the commercials climbed during the first two quarter, then dropped off at halftime. Viewing picked up again in the second half, soaring in the fourth quarter as the Packers wrapped up the game.

The most-watched TV commercial was the last one that aired, Fox's promotion for Glee, which followed the game.

Rentrak's data comes from its data bases of more than 17 million set top boxes. The Ad Retention Indix looks at the second-by-second average for commercials and compares them to the average for the entire program.