Station Owners Request Nielsen Postpone Continued Roll Out of Local People Meter Service
May 31 2005 - 9:13PM
PR Newswire (US)
Station Owners Request Nielsen Postpone Continued Roll Out of Local
People Meter Service CHICAGO, May 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- More
than one dozen media companies with television stations located
across the country have requested that Nielsen Media Research
postpone the continued roll out of Local People Meter (LPM)
service. The list of station owners included Allbritton
Communications Company, Barrington Broadcasting Company, Belo
Corporation, CBS, Cox Television, The Dispatch Broadcast Group,
Emmis Communications, E.W. Scripps Company, Fisher Communications,
Fox Television Stations, Gannett Broadcasting, Liberty Corporation,
LIN-TV, Media General Broadcast Group, NBC- Universal Television
Stations, Post-Newsweek Stations, Inc., and Tribune Broadcasting
Company. In a May 25th letter to Nielsen president and chief
executive officer Susan Whiting, the media companies pointed to
"flaws" in the LPM system that they said should be removed before
the service is expanded. They requested that Nielsen delay further
roll out of LPMs until the Media Ratings Council (MRC) has
accredited this service in the markets where it is now being used,
and that it receive accreditation in new markets prior to launching
the service. In the letter, the media companies said they "support
the use of new technology to improve audience measurement," but
that the reliability of the LPM service should be verified by MRC.
So far, LPM service has been accredited by the MRC in only two of
the five markets in which Nielsen has made it the only standard of
television audience measurement. Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
are slated for conversion to LPM service on June 2. Detroit,
Atlanta and Dallas are scheduled for conversion to LPM service
later this year. Copies of the May 25th letter sent to Whiting, and
a follow-up letter sent today are attached to this press release.
May 25, 2005 Ms. Susan Whiting President and CEO Nielsen Media
Research 770 Broadway New York, New York 10003 Dear Ms. Whiting:
The undersigned television broadcasters urge Nielsen Media Research
to postpone the continued rollout of Local People Meter (LPM)
service until the Media Ratings Council (MRC) has accredited this
service in the markets where it is now being used. We also ask for
your commitment to obtain MRC accreditation prior to deploying LPMs
into any other new market. Accurate and reliable viewing data are
the bedrock of the television industry. They determine what shows
will air and what shows will be cancelled. They determine how much
advertisers will pay to sponsor our programming. They determine
whether programs produced to serve our local communities, including
minority or other important audience segments, will succeed or fail
by measuring their interest in these programs. More broadly,
ratings data determine whether our entertainment and sports
programming will be shown by over-the-air broadcasters or will
migrate to pay services like cable and satellite. They determine
whether our news and public affairs programming efforts and our
industry's huge investment in digital television facilities will
generate a return or will force further expense cutbacks or even
bankruptcies. In short, a reliable gauge of television viewing is
essential to the credibility and viability of our industry, and to
our ability to compete. Without it, the currency on which billions
of dollars in advertising and programming expenditures rely will be
needlessly devalued, to the public's detriment. Our companies have
sought to work constructively with Nielsen for many years and to
provide suggestions to improve audience measurement. In meetings
called to discuss our experiences in the markets where LPM service
has been launched and diary/set meter measurement has been
scrapped, you have acknowledged that problems exist and have led to
significant underreporting of discrete audience segments in some
cases. You promised to address these failures, but we have yet to
see improvement. Both the size of your measured sample and the
incidence of Nielsen viewers not responding at all (fault rates)
have fallen well below Nielsen's own standards in many cases. The
undersigned enthusiastically support the use of new technology to
improve audience measurement. But we believe LPM, and any new
technology, as implemented and deployed must prove its reliability,
and in the case of LPMs, that proof should be obtained before it is
launched in additional markets to replace accepted metrics. Flaws
in the system must be removed before LPM service is expanded.
Otherwise, Nielsen threatens to irreparably harm the television
industry that has served the public interest for 60 years. LPM
service is fully accredited by MRC in only two (Boston and San
Francisco) of the five markets in which Nielsen has made it the
only standard of television audience measurement. Philadelphia and
Washington, D.C. are slated for conversion to LPMs on June 2, with
Detroit, Atlanta and Dallas scheduled during the next year. These
communities, of course, are the nation's largest markets, and
measurement errors or omissions in these markets will have
cascading impacts across the country. We are concerned that any
further rollout of LPM service, without MRC accreditation, risks
severe damage to public and industry acceptance of television
ratings data and can adversely impact programming decisions
affecting underreported audiences. We believe the responsible
course for Nielsen is to postpone your scheduled deployment of LPM
measurement services until these services are deemed reliable in
current markets to the satisfaction of an independent body, the
MRC. In fact, because of its Boston experience, the MRC itself
recommended that Nielsen implement these new LPMs only after
achieving accreditation. By taking this recommended course of
action, you will likely restore credibility to your organization
and avoid further challenges from concerned parties. Nielsen has
consistently pledged to be responsive to its customers and to the
highest standards of audience measurement, and now is the time for
your actions to give full meaning to your words. Please respond to
our requests by close of business Friday, May 27, 2005. Sincerely,
Patrick J. Mullen Tribune Broadcasting Company Gannett Broadcasting
Cox Television Post-Newsweek Stations, Inc. Allbritton
Communications Company NBC-Universal Television Stations Fisher
Communications, Inc. LIN-TV Corporation The Dispatch Broadcast
Group Barrington Broadcasting Co., Inc. Belo Corp. CBS Emmis
Communications Liberty Corporation Media General Broadcast Group
Fox Television Stations, Inc. E.W. Scripps Company Tribune
Broadcasting Company cc. George Ivie, Media Ratings Council May 31,
2005 Ms. Susan Whiting President and CEO Nielsen Media Research 770
Broadway New York, New York 10003 Dear Ms. Whiting: Your response
to our May 25 letter concerning the significant problems with
Nielsen's deployment of local people meters was disappointing. As
our letter clearly stated, the station groups which cosigned that
letter sought, and continue to seek, a constructive resolution to
the problems that have plagued this service since inception. Your
letter states that this is a highly competitive industry. You are
correct in that assertion which makes accurate ratings data that
much more important. Therefore postponing LPM deployment in any
additional markets, pending MRC accreditation, would be
constructive for all Nielsen clients. It is difficult to understand
how you chose to interpret our request as an effort to improperly
influence that marketplace. To the contrary, inaccuracies in your
data can and will have improper consequences. Your letter also
misreads the legal implications of our request. There is simply no
legal impediment to our seeking reliable, credible data from
Nielsen or to our suggesting that you obtain the accreditation that
would demonstrate this reliability. Our concerns are based upon the
evidence that has come from the markets in which you are currently
using the LPM service. Since you are well aware of these problems,
there is no need to recite them here. Nor does our suggestion
expose you to legal challenge. Your suggestion of a meeting with
the MRC executive committee could constitute the "productive
discussion" you indicate you are seeking. Consequently, I am
prepared to fly to New York for a meeting tomorrow with you and MRC
representatives, assuming we will discuss at that meeting how the
scheduled launch of the LPM service in Philadelphia and Washington,
D.C. can be deferred pending accreditation. If you will join me in
this effort, I will be on the next plane. Sincerely, Patrick J.
Mullen Tribune Broadcasting Gannett Broadcasting Cox Television
Post-Newsweek Stations, Inc. Allbritton Communications Company
NBC-Universal Television Stations Fisher Communications Company
LIN-TV Corporation The Dispatch Broadcast Group Barrington
Broadcasting co., Inc. Belo Corp. CBS Emmis Communications Liberty
Corporation Media General Broadcast Group Fox Television Stations,
Inc. E.W. Scripps Company Tribune Broadcasting Company Cc: George
Ivie, Media Ratings Council DATASOURCE: Tribune Broadcasting
CONTACT: Media Contacts - Mr. Jerry Fritz, Sr. VPLegal &
Strategic Affairs of Allbritton Communications, +1-202-728-4383; or
Mr. Tom Herwitz, President, Station Operations of Fox Television
Stations, Inc., +1-202-895-3144; or Mr. Patrick Mullen, President,
Tribune Broadcasting, +1-312-222-3491; or Mr. Gary Weitman,
VPCommunications of Tribune Company, +1-312-222-3394 Web site:
http://www.tribune.com/
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