Nielsen and ThinkTV New Zealand have announced the next step in video audience measurement with the successful integration of 500 streaming meters into Nielsen’s Television Audience Measurement (TAM) Panel in homes across the country.
In late 2020, Nielsen and the Television Broadcasters Group took the strategic decision to add streaming meters to the linear TAM panel, with the aim of delivering a true picture of consumers’ viewing habits on all internet-enabled devices in a household. For the first time, this enhanced measurement will show how many people in a household are watching online and how much time is spent on Broadcaster Video on Demand sites.
Tony Boyte, Executive Director of Nielsen New Zealand, says: “The introduction of 500 streaming meters to the Nielsen TAM Panel is a breakthrough moment for the New Zealand Media Industry. This technology provides transparency in the measurement of video streaming for Broadcasters, allowing them to more effectively optimise their content in the future. We’re excited to partner with New Zealand’s Broadcasters to roll out this new measurement technology.”
“This was a necessary first step”, says Nielsen’s NZ Director, Media Industry Lead, Mira Bradshaw.
“TV measurement needed to evolve to reflect the non-linear and increasingly complex viewing preferences of today’s consumers. Time spent on video streaming platforms has accelerated, especially during Covid, reinforcing the need for Broadcasters to truly understand how much time consumers spend with their content.”
Jodene Murphy, General Manager of ThinkTV, says: “It’s an important step towards building a more detailed picture of New Zealanders’ viewing behaviour. The initial insights this will deliver into digital consumption, demographics and co-viewing will significantly improve our understanding of BVOD streaming behaviour and help to lay the foundations of our future roadmap for total measurement.”
Data from the newly installed 500 streaming meters is currently being technically developed and reviewed to ensure it is representative, robust and ready for release. Nielsen and ThinkTV will be informing the market about the next steps in bringing the first phase of data to market over the coming months.
