• ABC News, Thursday, December 24, 2009 2 PM

For the first time in 23 years, Pepsi will not be running its typically high-production value TV ads during the Super Bowl. Rather, the soft drink maker is planning to spread around over $20 million in a social media play on the Web, which it is calling The Pepsi Refresh Project. ABC News is calling Pepsi's decision to pull its advertising from the Super Bowl telecast and concentrate on its Social Media strategy "the largest and most visible showdown between broadcast media and the Internet to date." Pepsi represents one of the stalwarts, not just of the Super Bowl advertiser lineup, but of broadcast TV in general. In 2006, spending on brand, Pepsi was at about $150 million. Although brand spending has been decreasing in recent years, Pepsi has continued to spend tens of millions on TV, while the Super Bowl annually has the largest audience of any TV show.

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