By PAUL CANTIN
Senior Reporter, JAM! Showbiz


A half-time performance by U2 helped turn Super Bowl XXXVI into a beautiful day for the Fox and Global networks.

Although ratings in the U.S. dipped by 4% at half-time, U2's mid-field performance of "Beautiful Day" and "Where The Streets Have No Name" held the bulk of the estimated 29.75 million households tuned in to the game, Reuters reports.

In Canada, more than one million people in the Toronto area alone tuned in to Global's carriage of the game. Nielsen Media Research reports that 1,016,000 in the Toronto region watched the telecast from New Orleans. (Because Global's ratings are not counted in Nielsen's national totals, no official Canada- wide numbers are available from Nielsen).

Global's Super Bowl pre-game coverage drew an additional 238,000 viewers, to tie for third place with City's "Great Movies Sunday." Global's "Malcolm In The Middle" claimed second place in the Toronto region with 457,000 viewers.

U2's half-time tribute to victims of the Sept. 11 attacks fared especially well considering that NBC scheduled an all-Playmate edition of the reality show "Fear Factor" to coincide with the midway-break in the football action.

Overall, U.S. ratings for the 3 1/2 hour telecast were up 7% from last year's contest. This year's game earned a 42.5 household rating in the 51 biggest U.S. television markets, compared to last season's 39.7, Reuters said. (More on U2)