NBCUniversal has exceeded last year’s record-setting upfront ad revenue haul north of $7 billion, company insiders said in confirming the finalizing of upfront dealmaking.Rates increased by high-single-digits, fueled by strong growth in categories like retail, quick-serve restaurants, consumer packaged goods, technology and streaming.
Pharmaceuticals led all categories with nearly 40% growth over last year, followed by travel, which climbed 30%.Commitments to Peacock, NBCU’s two-year-old streaming service, doubled from last year to reach $1 billion.
The platform got off to a sluggish start in 2020 amid the worst of Covid before gaining traction with originals like Bel-Air and the addition of the WWE Network.
In May, parent Comcast reported 28 million monthly users for Peacock, putting it ahead of its projected goal of 30 million to 35 million by 2025.Earlier this month, in a virtual appearance at a Credit Suisse investor conference, NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell said he was “thrilled” with the state of the company’s upfront efforts given initial expectations for a mid-single-digit rate increase.Declines in “viewership and distribution due to cord-cutting and everything else was offset by pricing at Peacock,” Shell said.
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