Super Bowl ad auction fails to attract bidders

A novel attempt to auction prime advertising space on Downtown Indianapolis buildings for the Super Bowl failed to attract a single bid.

The auction, which closed Friday night, included about 50 Downtown buildings, all willing to be wrapped in Super Bowl-related advertising for a fee. Plans called for bids to reach as high $100,000 for the right to hang banners.

But no one bit — at least not until the auction closed.

One media group has placed a hold on 11 buildings, said Chris Price, a partner with Mattison Corp. The company orchestrated the website, www.biggamewraps.com, that hosted the auction. Until the contract is final, he declined to identify the company.

The idea was that advertisers themselves would bid as well as media companies.

“It didn’t work out that way,” Price said. “Maybe the auction itself was a mistake, maybe having a set price might have been the way to go.”