So was the $2.7 million worth it for Toshiba and HD DVD?

The leading HD DVD manufacturer booked the 30-second ad space during Sunday’s Super Bowl XLII between the Patriots and Giants.

The commercial did not air nationally (at my Massachusetts home I watched most of the commercial breaks but do not remember seeing the Toshiba spot), but we know now that the game was the most viewed Super Bowl of all time, reaching 97.5 million households and ranking second behind only the final episode of M*A*S*H as the most watched program in TV history.

That’s a pretty wide audience to reach, even if it wasn’t a national pull for Toshiba and HD DVD. The ad wasn’t new, but a re-packaged product that we’ve seen that tries to draw viewers from watching high-def football to watching HD movies now that the football season is over.

The commercial ended by showing that prices for the HD-A3 start as low as $149.99 at major retailers.

So as Toshiba tries to spur the consumer toward HD DVD and reach the mass market, as Blu-ray has also been doing with commercials of its own, do you think the Super Bowl ad amid the second-most watched program in TV history will produce any traction?

Check out the commercial for yourself.

Arlen Schweiger - Editor of Electronic House Magazine

Arlen writes about home technology installations and product news and reviews for electronichouse.com and Electronic House magazine.