Every weekday we bring you the Ad Age/iSpot Hot Spots, new commercials tracked by iSpot.tv, the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company. (Scroll down to watch them all.)

A few highlights: Idris Elba’s “Biggest” serves as the soundtrack of a fresh 30-second TV cut of an Apple iPhone 14 ad. (A 100-second web version debuted on YouTube in October.) Nike shows off its new LeBron XX “Trinity” basketball shoes with a little help from LeBron James, his son Bronny and Father Time (Jason Momoa) as part of a continuing campaign. (Ad Age’s Adrianne Pasquarelli previewed the kickoff of the campaign on Oct. 18: “Nike pits LeBron James against Jason Momoa’s Father Time in new teaser.”) And Zach Braff and Donald Faison help T-Mobile promote its Price Lock guarantee.

Advertisers spent an estimated $194.4 million on commercials during the World Series on Fox, down 9.1% from last year’s fall classic, according to new figures from iSpot.tv.

This has allowed more brands and agencies to include NCM in their media plans as performance oriented KPIs are now a must have for all media buyers. We recently further strengthened our analytical capabilities to a new partnership with iSpot the real-time TV management company extending the value and capabilities of NCMX. Our iSpot integration expands the opportunities for our brand clients to plan, buy, and optimize video investments holistically.

Cinema advertising is one of the few mediums able to engage and connect with a young diverse audience at a national scale. But now the iSpot partnerships enables us to prove how cinema advertising extends the reach for buys across CTV, broadcast and cable.

The Astros-Phillies World Series delivered just over 5.87 billion TV ad impressions on Fox this year, down 7.7% from the six-game Braves-Astros set last year, notes SBJ research guru David Broughton, who combed through data from iSpot.tv.

Samsung Mobile led all brands in ad spend this year at $7.7 million, as the brand splurged on 36 more spots compared the Fall Classic in 2021. Samsung wasn’t in the top 10 last year. That dramatic increase in ad inventory helped Samsung lead in share of TV ad impressions with its “When I Move, You Move” spot, which accounted for just under 2.5% of all World Series impressions.

The Astros-Phillies World Series delivered just over 5.87 billion TV ad impressions on Fox this year, down 7.7% from the six-game Braves-Astros set last year, notes SBJ research guru David Broughton, who combed through data from iSpot.tv.

Advertisers spent an estimated $194.4 million on commercials during the World Series on Fox, down 9.1% from last year’s fall classic, according to new figures from iSpot.tv.

This year’s World Series, with the Houston Astros beating the Philadelphia Phillies, went the same six games as last year’s series, but viewership was down, with the broadcasts delivering a total of 5.87 billion impressions, down 7.7% from last year.

With the beauty category more competitive than ever, it’s true that many leading brands are seeing diminished activity among digital creators. Notably, however, this turbulence has predominantly impacted the cosmetics industry, with enthusiasm for skincare and haircare remaining strong.

Our data shows that, while the top 10 cosmetics brands by Earned Media Value (EMV) experienced an average 24% year-over-year decline from September 2021 to October 2022 relative to the previous 12 months, the top 10 skincare brands and top 10 haircare brands averaged respective 4% and 54% YoY growths.

These findings suggest that online beauty conversation isn’t subsiding so much as shifting. As the beauty and wellness categories become increasingly intertwined, creators are looking to products that enhance their natural beauty rather than mask perceived imperfections.

Learn more about polar bears, their life, their habitat, and conservation efforts on Polar Bears International. Track polar bears in Canada's Hudson Bay with its polar bear tracker.

There was some controversy, with critics (including some climate crisis deniers) arguing that it’s impossible to prove exactly why this particular creature was so ill. But experts agree that polar bears in general are at serious risk. “The Arctic is warming four times faster than the rest of the planet, melting the sea ice that polar bears require,” says Krista Wright, executive director of Polar Bears International. “Research shows that if business-as-usual greenhouse gas emissions continue, it’s likely that all but a few polar bear populations will collapse by 2100.”

After some amazing interactions with polar bears, Alysa McCall of Polar Bears International decided to dedicate her career to conserving this animal and its ecosystem.

Not everyone gets to be within arms length of a polar bear during their 9 to 5. But, as the director of conservation outreach for Polar Bears International, Alysa McCall does. She’s using her platform to educate and raise awareness about the challenges polar bears face in the modern day, such as losing their arctic sea ice habitat to climate change.

Irvine-based Vizio Holding Corp. (NYSE: VZIO) said yesterday it secured a multi-year extension of its distribution partnership with Fox Corp. (Nasdaq: FOXA, FOX).

The expanded partnership adds the Fox Sports app to Vizio’s Smart TVs and the Fox Weather Channel to Vizio’s streaming service, WatchFree+. Existing ad-supported Fox channels on
Vizio’s platform include news channel Fox LiveNow and Fox Soul, “a live and interactive streaming channel dedicated to the African American viewer,” Fox said.

Alan Wolk, the co-founder and lead analyst at TVRev, joined Cheddar News to discuss the new subscription model for the streaming giant Netflix.

As far as content goes, it’s content made by creators — not the brands themselves — that moves the needle the most. Brit Starr, senior vice president of strategy at CreatorIQ, said brands with big budgets are reaping rewards with rising engagement rates.

“Consumers became a lot more selective about the creators and brands that they align themselves with,” she said of social media’s shifting landscape. “We’re continuing to see increased investment in influencer marketing, increased attention to how to appropriately measure and understand the impact of your efforts so you can make the most informed decisions.

The Fox Sports app is now available on Vizio smart TVs, the companies said Thursday. Tubi, Fox Nation and Fox Now will continue to be available on Vizio TVs, and Fox Weather was added to Vizio’s WatchFree+ along with existing…

The Fox Sports app is now available on VIZIO Smart TVs, joining Tubi, FOX Nation, and Fox Now. As part of the agreement, the Fox Weather channel has been added to VIZIO WatchFree+, alongside existing Fox ad-supported channels LiveNOW and FoxSoul.

Chevrolet’s ad for its electric vehicles moves from second to first place in iSpot.tv’s ranking of the most-viewed auto ads. An 85.2% week-over-week surge in estimated TV ad spending delivered a 22.7% increase in impressions, primarily driven by NFL, MLB and college football games.

Dr. Flavio Lehner, the chief climate scientist at Polar Bears International and assistant professor in Earth and atmospheric science at Cornell University, and Alysa McCall, Polar Bears International staff scientist and director of conservation outreach, explained how polar bears are put under duress due to climate change, why ending emissions is key to slowing down the melting of sea ice, and how all species are connected.

In August, the STARZ app launched on [VIZIO Smart TV]s, expanding the streaming service’s reach. The app is available on most other devices as well, giving subscribers access to a vast on-demand library of Lionsgate movies, original content, and titles from the Starz linear channel.

Every weekday we bring you the Ad Age/iSpot Hot Spots, new commercials tracked by iSpot.tv, the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company. (Scroll down to watch them all.)

A few highlights: Best Buy wants you to know you can shop its Black Friday deals right now. Los Angeles Rams Head Coach Sean McVay stars in another installment of a Campbell’s campaign that encourages you to stop skipping lunch and instead eat some Campbell’s Chunky Soup in a spot with the tagline “Lunchtime is your halftime.” And Meta hypes the Meta Quest 2 headset with the help of two (fictional) gamer friends named Oscar and June.

Estimated national TV spending by the automakers totaled $274.5 million, down from $312.5 million in October 2021. Impressions totaled 26 billion, compared to 27.5 billion year-ago, according to iSpot.tv. The top five brands in spending for the month were Toyota ($29.4 million), Hyundai ($26.3 million), Jeep ($23.8 million), Chevrolet ($22.7 million) and Lexus ($20.2 million).