You can watch the Super Bowl online for free, but there are a few catches. For starters, you’re out of luck on phones unless you’re a Verizon customer. And if you’re interested in the ads, you may have a surprise in store.
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Here’s your online guide to the matchup in Houston between the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots.
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Watching the Game
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It’s true: Some people will be watching the Super Bowl for the actual game on an actual TV.
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You can join them even if you don’t have a cable subscription or a good signal with an antenna. Just fire up the Fox Sports Go app on many streaming TV devices, including Roku, Apple TV, Google Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV and Xbox. Fox is suspending its usual requirement that you log on with a cable or satellite account, meaning it’s free.
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If you can’t get to a TV, try the Fox Sports Go app on a tablet or FoxSportsGo.com on a laptop or desktop. Verizon has exclusive rights on phones. If you’re a Verizon customer, you can watch through the NFL Mobile app. Otherwise, find another device.
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Watching the Ads
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The Super Bowl is the rare event where viewers do pay attention to ads . A 30-second spot goes for about $5 million.
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Fox’s online stream will get you most of the same ads shown on television. This includes local ads, thanks to a technology Fox is employing to customize the stream to your local station.
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The catch is that a handful of stations aren’t participating, so you may see a static screen denoting a commercial break. There may also be a few cases in which a national or local advertiser has bought the spot for television only; a substitute ad may appear online in its place.
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You can also watch many of the ads on the web….