Supreme Court stays Bell's Super Bowl appeal, so U.S. ads will air in Canada this year

Canadian viewers will still be able to watch American ads when they watch this year's Super Bowl on American channels.

In a ruling dated Jan. 24, the Supreme Court of Canada rejected Bell's request for a stay of a CRTC regulation allowing U.S. ads to be shown on Canadian airwaves during the NFL championship game.

That means the CRTC decision will almost certainly stay in place for this year's Feb. 4game, pitting the New England Patriots against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Canada's top court agreed to hold an expedited hearing in the case, but did not or could not immediately say when that hearing would be. So it is still possible that the court could rule in Bell's favour in time to block U.S. ads for this year's game.

American advertisers compete to create new and memorable ads for the Super Bowl broadcast. But until the 2015 ruling, Canadian viewers couldn't see them.

They were blocked on Canadian airwaves and Canadian commercials appeared instead. As a result of the CRTC change, Bell says its advertising revenues dropped by $11 million and it lost 40 per cent of its audience for the football game last February.