A group representing TV networks and ad firms has written a letter to audience measurement company Nielsen asking them to “pause” big data releases.
According to Ad Week, The Video Advertising Bureau cited several inconsistencies in the first months’ worth of data, a claim that Nielsen disputes.
Bureau CEO Sean Cunningham is urging Nielsen to withhold data, fearing it could be used to estimate the price of advertising revenue.
“Up front” is a big deal in the television industry because it allows marketers to buy commercial television airtime several months before the television season begins.
Cunningham claims that the Nielsen data released is “rife with illogical audience patterns and contradictions that render it currently unusable.” He added Nielsen’s data lacks “meaningful” disclosures about how it was calculated.
Nielsen says it’s “deeply disappointed that these concerns would be raised in the press rather than indirect discussion and collaboration with us.”
According to Yahoo, Nielsen’s accreditation for national TV ratings in September was suspended by industry watchdog, The Media Ratings Council. The action arose from complaints about undercounting viewers in 2020 and early 2021.
