MRC: Nielsen Undercounted Viewing

The Media Rating Council said that Nielsen's numbers during the COVID-19 pandemic undercounted viewers, as was alleged by networks and distributors represented by the VAB.

Bradocasting&Cable reports the MRC said it believes that total usage of television by persons 18-49--the key demo used to sell advertising--was understated by approximately 2% to 6% for the February 2021 measurement period. 

The MRC added that persons using television estimates that persons using television estimates in the persons 18-49 group was understated by a range of 1% to 5% in February 2021.

VAB CEO Sean Cunningham said the MRC statement was “just the tip of the iceberg,” He noted that it contradicts what Nielsen has been saying and calls for "greater scrutiny" of the situation.

The MRC estimate of Nielsen’s undercount covers just one month. Cunningham noted that in February, TV ad spending, according to Nielsen was $3.9 billion. A 1% undercount would represent $468 million and 6% would be $2.8 billion.

The undercount, according to the VAB was the result of changes in the way the Nielsen panel was maintained during the pandemic. COVID-19 protocols meant Nielsen couldn’t send its field people into people’s homes. As a result, some homes that were no longer watching TV for unclear reasons were left in the sample.

Cunningham noted that Nielsen's earnings last week contained $100 million in operations cost savings from having closed field and call centers. That means Nielsen profited from the changes it made in maintaining its sample, he said.

Nielsen noted that 93% of C3 ratings for people 18 to 49 for major networks saw no more than a 0.02 change in ratings points.

“We will continue to work with the MRC on other analyses in the future.,” Nielsen said. “Throughout the pandemic, Nielsen has been fully transparent in collaborating with the MRC and focused on procedural changes to support its panelists, people and the integrity of currency metrics used by the industry.”