NBCUniversal and the NFL are planning an early Christmas present for viewers of Saturday’s game between the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Chargers: A commercial-free fourth quarter.
Saturday will mark the first ever exclusive NFL game for Peacock, the NBCUniversal-owned streaming service, and the company is forgoing commercials in the quarter to further entice viewers to check it out (NBC will have another game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals just before its Peacock exclusive).
The company says that the elimination of commercial breaks in the quarter will mean 12 minutes of additional game-related content. NBCU says it will have Football Night in America studio updates and analysis during what would otherwise be breaks as well as “content takeovers” that, while not technically commercials, will serve as sponsored segments.
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Capital One, Hyundai and Walmart are presenting the commercial-free quarter, and their brands will be integrated into the content segments. Among the ideas planned are an “NFL shoppable moment” where viewers can scan a QR code to be taken to Walmart’s holiday hub, where they can rush order something for Christmas. One content takeover will see NBC NFL analysts Chris Simms and Devin McCourty as they turn to the big box retailer for last-minute gifting needs.
The fourth quarter will open by telling viewers that there will be no commercial breaks, and thanking the three presenting sponsors.
“The power of live sports is more prevalent than ever, and at NBCUniversal, we not only have the scale of our broadcast platform, but we now can reach an entirely new audience through Peacock,” said Mark Marshall, chairman of global advertising and partnerships for NBCUniversal, in a statement. “With this one-of-a-kind sponsorship environment attached to our first-ever exclusive Peacock NFL game, we are able to connect an untapped set of consumers to our marketers, and we couldn’t be more grateful to our partners at the NFL for trusting us to creatively launch this groundbreaking format.”
“We are proud to work with our partners at the NFL to present this first-of-its kind experience,” adds NBC Sports President Rick Cordella. “NBC Sports’ best-in-class NFL production, Peacock’s fan-friendly viewer experience, and this innovative advertising model will allow NFL fans an exciting new way to watch the game’s conclusion.”
The game will also be a major test for Peacock, which will host an exclusive wild card playoff game in January. That game will be the first time that an NFL playoff game is exclusive to a streaming service.
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