ANN ARBOR, MI, October 28, 2005 – Chicago’s dominance over Houston in the recently completed World Series did not stop with the play on the field.  When considering the game-within-the-game of corporate logo placements during the Fox coverage, Chicago’s home plate virtual signage averaged 18.5% more on-screen time per half inning for sponsors than that of Houston’s location.

        According to research conducted by Joyce Julius and Associates, brand logos appearing during the four World Series game telecasts collected a combined one hour, 35 minutes, 37 seconds (1:35:37) of clear, in-focus exposure time.  During Games One and Two from Chicago’s U.S. Cellular Field, logos appearing on the home plate signage averaged 1:17 of on-screen time per half inning, while the final two contests from Houston’s Minute Maid Park averaged 1:05 per half inning.  With advertising time estimated at more than $10,800 per second during the Fox telecasts, the differences in the time compares to nearly a $260,000 disparity for a full inning of play.

         The reason for this gap is simple:  Chicago’s home plate signage location (where Fox digitally inserts corporate logos) was located slightly up the field toward first base, whereas the Houston sign was situated more in line with home plate.  The end result was blockage of the sign during plate appearances by left-handed batters.

         Taco Bell appeared clear and in-focus on the home plate signs more than any other brand, totaling 13:55 during the World Series telecasts.  When comparing the in-broadcast time to the estimated commercial cost, the restaurant chain secured more than $9 million of exposure time from the home plate signs alone.  Chevrolet also utilized the home plate signs among its arsenal of in-broadcast tactics, leading to 12:59 and $8.4 million.

         Thanks to an extra inning marathon lasting 14 innings, Game Three turned in the highest cumulative exposure totals for the home plate signs.  Altogether, the 14 brands utilizing the sign position during the Game Three broadcast collected 28:39 of clear, in-focus exposure time, or $18.6 million of comparable exposure value.

         Joyce Julius measured the impact of the home plate virtual signage through the utilization of its Image Identification Technology, which allows for precise digital measurement of logos appearing during televised events.