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CHICAGO, Feb. 10, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Cars.com, a leading online resource for buying and selling a car, scored big in a notable way with two 30-second commercials in Super Bowl XLV. The site's mobile offerings were featured for barely three seconds on screen, and saw their popularity and usage skyrocket during and following Sunday's game.

"It's not news to say that our traffic and awareness went up following the debut of our commercials in Sunday's game," said Carolyn Crafts, Chief Marketing Officer, Cars.com. "What really pleased us is how exceptionally well our mobile app and mobile site traffic went up. Downloads of our app were up 140 percent following the game, and usage of our mobile site is also up significantly this week. So while the analysts continue to debate whether ad time during Sunday's showdown was worth the investment, we can unequivocally say that even the briefest glimpse during the game can lead to tremendous results."

The Cars.com site launched in 1998, the mobile optimized site launched in 2007 and iPhone app in 2010. The mobile site allows users to read expert reviews, search inventory, look through photos and calculate Smart Target Price to find out how much to spend on a vehicle.

"Mobile new car searches for the automakers who advertised on Sunday were also significantly higher," said Crafts. "All manufacturers who advertised saw a lift in mobile searches of new models of at least 30 percent over the same period a week ago. Some of the big winners were BMW, Hyundai and Mini, who all saw interest in their 2011 models rise by more than 50 percent."

To view the Cars.com 2011 commercials, click here, or visit www.Cars.com/superbowl.

About Cars.com

Cars.com is an online destination for car shoppers that offers information from consumers and experts to help buyers formulate opinions on what to buy, where to buy and how much to pay for a car. With price listings, side-by-side comparison tools, photo galleries, videos, unbiased editorial content and a large selection of new- and used-car inventory, Cars.com puts millions of car buyers in control of their shopping process with the information they need to make confident buying decisions.

Launched in June 1998, Cars.com is a division of Classified Ventures, LLC, which is owned by leading media companies, including Belo (NYSE: BLC), Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI), The McClatchy Company (NYSE: MNI), Tribune Company and The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO).

SOURCE Cars.com