The Rating Race – ViacomCBS Partnership with VideoAmp to Challenge Nielsen
It seems like every month, groundbreaking and industry-altering shifts are occurring in the media and advertising world. In last month’s blog, The Future and Fate of Nielsen Ratings, we discussed the changes affecting the industry leading to a need for a more diverse, accurate, and omnichannel measurement system. In that article, we dove into the challenges Nielsen faces and the efforts media giants like NBCUniversal are taking to develop new measurement alternatives to better understand and interpret their audiences. Still, NBCUniversal will not be the only one attempting to create a new measurement system. ViacomCBS has recently announced their deal with the advertising data company, VideoAmp, that aims to change how media measurement is done. In this article, we will dive deeper into what these major players are aiming to do as they pave the way for the future of media measurement.
Status of Nielsen
As a brief recap, Nielsen has long been struggling to adapt their traditional rating system to evolve with the changes in media amongst the rise of digital, streaming, and more. Subsequently, their image to advertisers has been under major scrutiny as agencies and media buyers reexamine the reliability of Nielsen’s data that guides major business decisions. This issue has recently worsened as Nielsen lost its accreditation for local and national TV measurement by the Media Rating Council (MRC) after “the measurement firm undercounted national TV household viewership during the pandemic, sparking pushback from TV networks,” according to an article written by Alison Weissbrot for PRWeek. This move has only energized other companies to search for new alternatives.
ViacomCBS’s Move
With longstanding pushback, media companies are realizing they cannot wait for Nielsen to evolve with the market. This has led to the most recent development by ViacomCBS and their partnership with VideoAmp, an advertising data and software company. According to Wayne Friedman’s MediaPost article, “ViacomCBS, VideoAmp Cut Deal For ‘Alternative Currency’ Measurement,” this partnership aims to create a new “alternative currency” used for measurement. A key differentiator in VidoeAmp’s technology, compared to Nielsen, is its “proprietary data/methodology coming from set-top-box and smart TV Automatic Content Recognition (ACR) data for traditional TV, streaming video and digital media.”
In a multi-channel media landscape, advertisers and media companies are searching for solutions to understand how their content connects through various mediums and consumer touchpoints. While this is still early in emergence, John Halley, COO of Advertising Revenue at ViacomCBS, says that they are predicting many partnerships with marketers across the automotive, insurance, and fast food industries as well as other advertisers who are needing a more evolved audience measurement system.
Still, the idea of a one-size-fits-all measurement system is likely not in the cards. Halley notes that they are “not saying VideoAmp is replacing Nielsen as [their] primary currency,” but rather, “reimagining of the measurement ecosystem, the capabilities that could be brought to bear.” With this new partnership, ViacomCBS will use data across Nielsen, VideoAmp, and Comscore to interpret and understand their audience and it is likely many will follow suit.
Final Thoughts
This latest move by ViacomCBS is one of a trend that will likely continue as other major players search for alternative solutions that can measure and grow with consumer behavior. Michael Bürgi, Senior Editor of Media Buying and Planning at Digiday, notes in his article that alternatives must align with this multi-measurement future. He includes commentary by Nancy Larkin, Horizon Media’s Executive Vice President, that highlights the undeniable fact that “too much time is spent by buyers and agencies having to analyze the data.” Furthermore, in addition to measuring data, there must be a standardized and agreed-upon value that these metrics hold.
While it is still too early to ditch Nielsen and jump to a new alternative, ViacomCBS putting its name in the hat is a big step toward the future. At River Direct, we are sure to look at the media landscape and track the moves of today, tomorrow, and beyond to provide multichannel strategies for long-term success. Learn more about River Direct and be sure to follow us across our socials (Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram) as well as subscribe to our newsletter below for the latest updates in the marketing and advertising space.