Nielsen to include cord cutters in new ratings
NEW YORK — The Nielsen company, increasingly under fire from the television industry, said it would soon incorporate homes that have cut off cable in favor of broadband in its viewing measurements for local TV markets.
Nielsen estimates some 20% of American homes are now broadband only for on-screen entertainment. The company already includes these homes in its national TV measurements but in January will do so for local markets, giving TV stations a more complete picture of who’s watching in order to sell ads.
“It’s a big step to making sure that our measurement is really inclusive,” said Catherine Herkovic, Nielsen managing director and executive vice president of local television.
The move comes as media companies have been more vocal in their unhappiness with Nielsen, which for decades has had a virtual monopoly on measuring television viewership, statistics used to govern billions of dollars in advertising spending.
Because of that position, it’s not uncommon for media companies to grumble about Nielsen and yearn for a competitor. They worry that Nielsen is not equipped to handle the dramatic shift toward streaming services and viewing on multiple devices.
While media and technology have been completely transformed, measurement remains outdated, said Kelly Abcarian, NBCUniversal’s executive vice president, measurement and impact, advertising and partnerships.
NBCUniversal last month sent out a request for proposals from other companies to help build a new measurement system and got 80 responses, more than expected. That’s a bold step: for all the periodic unhappiness with Nielsen, it has never translated into a competitor that can match its scale and service.
“It’s time for us to declare measurement independence and build solutions that will serve all consumers, advertisers, publishers and platforms for the next century,” Abcarian said.