Ad afficonados praying for a follow-up to "robot committing suicide" or "chromed Escalade" will have to wait another year, as The Detroit News reports that GM dropped plans for television advertising in this year's Super Bowl. GM had earlier announced plans to curtail sponsorships and ad spending; combined with a lack of new product launching around the first of the year, the General's decision doesn't come as a big surprise. Still, the marks a big turnaround for the company who has traditionally been the third largest Super Bowl advertiser, behind only Anheuser-Busch and Pepsi. So does this move mean GM and the NFL are on the outs? Not exactly. General Motors is still planning a heavy brand presence at the actual game, along with sponsorships on the pre- and post-game shows. Overall, the move lines up with GM's recent ad spending decisions, such as bailing on the Primetime Emmy Awards and 2009 Academy Awards, and canceling their Style Event. Our money is on the Super Bowl ban being a temporary condition: If there's no 60-second Volt spot next year or the year thereafter, Ben will eat his hat. [Detroit News; Photo: ">DetroitBasketball2004]