Ad-Less Apple Maintains Presence at Super Bowl 50 - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

Ad-Less Apple Maintains Presence at Super Bowl 50

by

Apple was conspicuously absent from commercial slots aired during the television broadcast of yesterday's Super Bowl 50, but that didn't stop some of its products from popping up in ads for other companies' wares (via AppleInsider).

In TV spots aired during the National Football League's biggest game, a shout-out for Apple Music featured at the end of T-Mobile's ad, which promoted the network carrier's unlimited streaming feature.

Apple Music on T-Mobile
Meanwhile, hawk-eyed viewers may have seen an Apple Watch make a brief cameo appearance in a Hyundai commercial showcasing the car company's smartphone-compatible automotive system Blue Link, which enables remote voice-activation of several in-car controls.


Elsewhere, a Super Bowl-themed ad for Apple's Beats headphones appeared on Twitter and YouTube, featuring Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton wearing a pair of Powerbeats Wireless 2 in-ear headphones while training.


Apple, along with Intel, Yahoo, and Google, gave $2 million in cash and other services to offset taxpayer costs of hosting Super Bowl 50, which took place at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California. In exchange for the donations, each company received a private Super Bowl suite and publicity around the game. TV commercials aired during the game however can cost up to $5 million alone.
Apple helped establish the annual hype surrounding Super Bowl TV commercials, with its "1984" television ad for the Macintosh being among the most iconic in TV advertising history. After a 15-year spell of absence, the company ran its last dedicated Super Bowl commercial in 1999, remembered for its depiction of sentient computer HAL 9000 from the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Top Rated Comments

134 months ago
It is clear that Apple does not need to spend the ridiculous cost of a commercial spot in the Super Bowl. Their products are selling better than ever....

Except for iPads, and iPhones, ands Macs....

Other than that they don't need to advertise at all.

:D:p:rolleyes::apple:
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Tycho24 Avatar
134 months ago
It is clear that Apple does not need to spend the ridiculous cost of a commercial spot in the Super Bowl. Their products are selling better than ever....

Except for iPads, and iPhones, ands Macs....

Other than that they don't need to advertise at all.

:D:p:rolleyes::apple:
I must've COMPLETELY misunderstood the last earnings call... will you please grace me with your intellect & interpret it for me??
I had NO idea that they hadn't really sold many Macs or iPhones, huh... weird.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
pdaholic Avatar
134 months ago
We may have not had a "1984" ad, but at least we got "puppy monkey baby."
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
69Mustang Avatar
134 months ago
I must've COMPLETELY misunderstood the last earnings call... will you please grace me with your intellect & interpret it for me??
I had NO idea that they hadn't really sold many Macs or iPhones, huh... weird.
Apparently Cuban Missles didn't put enough emoticons on his quote for you to realize it was a joke. Lighten up Francis. It wasn't an attack on Apple.
[doublepost=1454944067][/doublepost]
We may have not had a "1984" ad, but at least we got "puppy monkey baby."
That was the absolute weirdest thing I've ever seen. Being a case of beer down when it aired reaaaaally didn't help either.:D
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Bubba Satori Avatar
134 months ago
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/people-making-fun-tim-cooks-163232896.html;_ylt=AwrC0wyW17hW8C8AVt.TmYlQ;_ylu=X3oDMTByMHVzM20zBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMzBHZ0aWQDBHNlYwNzYw--


MacRumors content image
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dannyyankou Avatar
134 months ago
It is clear that Apple does not need to spend the ridiculous cost of a commercial spot in the Super Bowl. Their products are selling better than ever....

Except for iPads, and iPhones, ands Macs....

Other than that they don't need to advertise at all.

:D:p:rolleyes::apple:
Yeah, they're really struggling now. Wait...

MacRumors content image

Edit: I didn't realize this was sarcasm. It could've been more clear.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Apple Card iPhone 16 Pro Feature

Apple Card Promo to Offer Free AirPods Pro 3

Friday May 15, 2026 8:59 am PDT by
Starting as early as next week, customers who sign up for an Apple Card at Apple's retail stores in the U.S. will receive $249 cash back when they purchase AirPods Pro 3, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The promotion has yet to be officially announced by Apple, so exact terms and conditions are not available at this time. AirPods Pro 3 are priced at $249 in the U.S., so customers who...
Apple WWDC25 iOS 26 CarPlay Light mode 250609

Six Popular iPhone Apps Now Available on CarPlay

Thursday May 14, 2026 9:10 am PDT by
Apple's CarPlay system for accessing iPhone apps on a vehicle's dashboard screen has received six popular apps in recent weeks: ChatGPT, Perplexity, Grok, Google Meet, WhatsApp, and the indie artist streaming platform Audiomack. Make sure you have the latest version of each app and they will automatically appear on CarPlay. ChatGPT Starting with iOS 26.4, CarPlay supports voice-based...
ipad mini 7 blue

OLED iPad Mini: Release Date, Pricing, and What to Expect

Thursday May 14, 2026 5:08 am PDT by
According to the latest rumors, Apple is close to launching its next-generation iPad mini. So what should we expect from the successor to the iPad mini 7 that Apple released over a year ago? Read on to find out. Processor and Performance Apple is working on a next-generation version of the iPad mini (codename J510/J511) that features the A19 Pro chip, according to information found in code...