Nielsen Gets MRC Accreditation of Digital In TV Ratings

Nielsen announced today that it has been granted accreditation by the Media Rating Council (MRC) for its inclusion of digital measurement in the TV ratings. The additional capability, known as Digital in TV Ratings, accounts for linear TV viewing occurring on desktop and mobile devices for participating programming sources. This is the first solution to receive accreditation from the MRC for its contribution to TV audience measurement for programming viewed on computers and mobile devices.

Digital in TV Ratings launched in 2015 and is currently in use by clients such as ABC, CBS, Freeform and Univision. The capability draws on Nielsen’s Total Audience methodology, combining census-based data, persons demographics and Nielsen’s high-quality, representative panels to report audiences across National and Local People Meter markets. It provides a method for programmers to account for all viewers across devices as long as the program content and commercials match the linear TV airing. The results are combined with traditional linear audience metrics to include that viewing into the C3/C7 and local average quarter hour measurement.

Nielsen will continue to work with the MRC to gain accreditation for other Nielsen Total Audience solutions, such as Digital Content Ratings, and intends to seek accreditation for Total Content Ratings.

MRC Executive Director and CEO George W. Ivie said, “We congratulate Nielsen for meeting the rigorous requirements necessary to earn MRC accreditation for Digital in TV Ratings. With this validation of its measurement of TV programming viewed on computers and mobile devices, Nielsen has taken an important step in its efforts to meet the needs of the marketplace to have a fuller view into the consumption of TV programming across platforms, regardless of how it is being consumed.”

“We’ve seen undeniable changes in content consumption behavior, and more than ever, ensuring we have measurement capabilities in the industry to adequately capture audience digital & linear viewing is critical. Nielsen’s MRC accreditation reaffirms the importance of transparent and accountable TV ratings for digital, especially as companies like Univision serve our respective audiences whenever and wherever they choose,” said Jed Meyer, executive vice president of corporate research, Univision Communications Inc.

Accreditation provides media buyers and sellers with an additional level of confidence as they leverage the solution to account for audiences across desktop, tablets and smartphones, in addition to TV—to most effectively distribute premium content and sell across these screens.

“With our Total Audience strategy, we are able to provide the industry with broader audience coverage and inclusion—whether it’s C3, C7 or beyond—as clients look to monetize their audiences across all screens,” said Megan Clarken, president of product leadership, Nielsen. “This independent and transparent validation of our methodology to include digital desktop and mobile viewing is another significant step toward delivering Total Audience to the marketplace, and we are very pleased to be able to say that our developments meet the level of quality and rigor that MRC accreditation represents.”