GoDaddy.com hires same actress from pulled commercial

The "Go Daddy Girl" — the woman with the broken tank top strap featured in a controversial Super Bowl television commercial — isn’t finished.

Bob Parsons, president and founder of GoDaddy.com, a Scottsdale-based domain register for computer Web sites, said his firm has purchased time for at least two new commercials featuring Nikki Cappelli, the actress who grabbed national attention after she appeared in the Super Bowl commercial.

"We just finished producing two additional television commercials, both featuring the Go Daddy Girl (Cappelli)," Parsons reported on his Web site. "These will air after the Super Bowl and are a more direct response oriented in nature."

Nima Kelly, vice president of public relations for GoDaddy.com, said the commercials will begin running later this week on ESPN, MSNBC, the Sci-Fi Channel, USA Network, A &E and Bravo.

"They will be completely different from the Super Bowl commercial," Kelly said. "There will be no committees or dancing, but they will feature the same actress."

Parson’s 30-second commercial ran during the first quarter of the game watched by more than 80 million viewers, but was pulled before its second appearance scheduled for the final two minutes of the game.

The NFL and Fox Broad- casting Co. agreed to withhold the second running of the commercial, which focused on a young woman whose tank top strap breaks during her appearance before a "censorship committee," mostly of aging men.

The commercial was described as a "parody of the censorship" that is taking place today, wrote Parsons, referring to the anguish caused among broadcast corporations last year when Janet Jackson’s right breast was exposed during the Super Bowl halftime.

The pulled commercial and the two, yet-to-be-viewed commercials were produced in Los Angeles by professional actors, including Cappelli.

Brian McCarthy, spokesman for the NFL, said the football league objected to the commercial after it aired during the first quarter of the game.

"We did have a conversation with Fox after the spot aired and we expressed our belief that the spot was inappropriate," McCarthy said.

"But, ultimately, it was Fox’s decision to not air it again," he said. "We (the NFL) don’t have control of advertising. We don’t sell it, nor do we have an opportunity to review it prior to its airing."

Jon Nesvig, president of advertising sales for Fox, said the ad was pulled because it was "out of step."

Lou D’Ermilio, senior vice president of communications at Fox’s New York City headquarters, said he had no information about a potential refund for GoDaddy.com for the second commercial spot.

Parsons said he wired additional funds to Fox for the last two minutes of playtime, bringing his costs for both Super Bowl commercials to more than $3 million.

No other executives at Fox or the NFL could be reached for comment about refunds.

The GoDaddy.com ad was among more than 50 commercials that ran during the less than three hours of the Super Bowl, costing buyers an estimated $200 million.

Sunday’s commercial was the company’s first attempt at what is planned as a major national and international advertising campaign, Parsons said.