A federal appeals court has removed a procedural block that clears the way for Cumulus Media to resume its lawsuit against Nielsen in a lower court.
On Tuesday, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals published an order issued on July 13, which was held for a few weeks after Nielsen sought review on the matter. The court denied Nielsen’s request for review last week, clearing the way for the case to return to the lower court.
The return of the case to district court also enforces an earlier injunction that prevents Nielsen from enforcing its “Network Policy,” which requires Nielsen’s radio clients to subscribe to local ratings data in order to obtain similar national data, the website Inside Radio reported.
Earlier this summer, ,U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas also set a pricing benchmark in the injunction. Her order says a nationwide rate equal to or below the highest annual 2026 rate Nielsen charges any broadcaster for nationwide data is “presumptively reasonable.”
That provision remains central to the dispute between Cumulus and Nielsen: The mandate does not determine what Cumulus should pay for nationwide ratings data, nor does it resolve the parties’ disagreement over pricing and contract terms. Instead, it removes the procedural barrier that kept the district court from addressing those issues while the appellate process remained open.
The timing is important for Cumulus and its Westwood One network: The broadcaster earlier said its access to Nielsen’s national data expires next month, and it argued that continued access to that data is necessary for its national radio advertising business.
The company doesn’t necessarily feel the same way about Nielsen’s local radio data, which puts the broadcaster at a competitive disadvantage in some markets. Cumulus owns nearly 400 local AM and FM radio stations across the country.
The case now returns to Vargas, who could be asked to determine whether Nielsen’s proposed terms comply with the injunction and whether the rates offered for standalone nationwide ratings are commercially reasonable.
