• Ad Age, Wednesday, February 14, 2007 10 AM

Along with the Dixie Chicks, Chevrolet and L'Oreal came out big winners at Sunday night's Grammy awards, since the two marketers sponsored the most-watched Grammy Awards in several years, drawing a 12.1 rating and a 19 share, according to Nielsen Media Research.

That audience number is up from 2006 and 2005 but below 2004, when Outkast and Coldplay took top honors and drew 26 million viewers. The move to Sunday from Wednesday also helped. The 2006 Grammy show had to battle "American Idol" and ended up with its lowest viewership ever.

Chevy ran a spot that first aired during the Super Bowl, while actress Penelope Cruz hawked L'Oreal's "telescopic mascara." The price of a 30-second spot is not yet publicly available, but Nielsen said last year's spots sold for $675,900.

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