Reading trade press across multiple parts of the media universe keeps you updated on how other media have it better than radio in some aspects. In video, it’s measurement, especially from Nielsen.
Brad Adgate writes a regular column for Forbes, a major magazine but nowhere near as influential as Barrett Media. His April 10 column was entitled “This Year Ad Marketplace Will Have Choices on the Negotiating Currency.” A long title, but important content.
Yes, Nielsen is still the leader in video ratings. An earlier column of mine noted that the company now has Media Rating Council accreditation for its Big Data + Panel product. Brad noted that the panel is up to 42,000 households and just over 100,000 persons. The panel data is used to model data from set-top boxes and smart TVs. Nielsen has access to data from Comcast, Dish, DirecTV, Roku, and Vizio with over 45 million homes and 75 million devices, likely including something you use.
While it may seem anachronistic in an era of streaming and programmatic advertising, the “upfront” is still a big deal. Agencies representing advertisers will spend billions of dollars to lock in buys beginning next month. This upfront marks the first time that Nielsen will produce only Big Data + Panel information. Oh yes, there’s an “out of home” piece of Nielsen’s video service now covering the entire continental US. You know it as PPM and the video industry is appreciative that radio funded its development.
Further, MRC accredited the use of first-party streaming data in the national Nielsen service. This means Amazon can use some of its own data for Thursday Night Football ratings and the NBA when that deal starts. The NFL likes this, and when the NFL likes something you’re doing, that’s an important endorsement.
For Nielsen, so far, so good, but they have competition. Brad discussed VideoAmp, which Paramount used for a while last year. However, Nielsen made a new multiyear deal with Paramount in February.
VideoAmp also uses big data. Then you have iSpot and Comscore, both of which are competitors in this space and use big data as well. Per Brad’s column, VideoAmp is now undergoing the MRC accreditation process, which, from personal experience, can make prepping for a colonoscopy feel like a walk in the park.
Meanwhile, Comscore just received MRC accreditation for its household-level TV measurement covering both national and local estimates. The accreditation covers household, age, and gender “households with” metrics. That’s four companies offering video measurement. Broadcast radio has Nielsen Audio, and streaming has Triton.
Why don’t we have this kind of competition in the audio measurement field? First, the market for audio measurement is much smaller than video thanks to the huge number of ad dollars on the national side. Next, the major audio players that pay the bulk of the fees are generally on shaky financial ground. The Big Three have all paid visits to bankruptcy court (and may again!).
Then there is the Nielsen legal department. Brad cited an AdAge article that said Nielsen has filed at least ten lawsuits against potential competitors since 2021, typically for patent infringement. Two lawsuits against VideoAmp were dismissed by a judge at the end of March. Did Nielsen cry in their beer and move on? No! The company filed another lawsuit against VideoAmp in the same court just days later.
The lesson here is that little financial incentive exists for a company to bring competition to the audio measurement field. If you have a great idea for an electronic system, you’ll likely end up in court with Nielsen, whether the case is valid or not (Arbitron took similar actions prior to the acquisition). You’ll need plenty of capital and clients who are ready to sign contracts. Those clients will want to pay less than they pay Nielsen today, notwithstanding how many years Nielsen has them contractually tied up into the future.
Would you put money into that kind of a venture? My first gig involving ratings was at the National Association of Broadcasters back in 1987. Before that, I worked at a station and remember competitors to Arbitron coming along, including Birch, TRAC-7, RAM, and AccuRatings, none of which have been relevant in the 21st century except in history lessons. I worked for two different ratings companies, one of which, Birch/Scarborough, went out of business while I was there. After a half century of studying and participating, I wouldn’t invest.
For better or worse, we’re stuck with one ratings choice. The industry’s goal should be improvement and lower costs. Good luck!
Let’s meet again next week.
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