Key Points
- Nielsen plans to introduce a new suite of cross-platform audience measurement products in early 2027, the company announced this week.
- The products will combine first-party streaming data from publishers with Nielsen’s national panels and third-party big data; Nielsen says the new tools will provide a more comprehensive view of audience reach and time spent across television and streaming.
- The company plans to integrate programming metadata with viewership information to improve content-level measurement — and, of course, artificial intelligence will have a role in the new products.
- The announcement follows criticism from broadcasters and media companies about Nielsen’s ability to accurately measure streaming audiences.
Nielsen plans to introduce a new suite of audience measurement products early next year that promises to give broadcasters, streaming services and other media companies a more-comprehensive understanding of how their programming performs across traditional TV channels and emerging connected TV platforms.
In a post on Thursday, Nielsen said the new products will roll out in early 2027. The products will combine Nielsen’s existing national TV panels and “Big Data” sources with first-party streaming data provided directly from publishers.
Nielsen says the approach will provide more comprehensive information about audience reach and time spent watching programming, addressing gaps in traditional measurement systems that rely heavily on samples of television households. The company intends to incorporate programming metadata alongside audience viewing information, allowing clients to better understand how individual titles perform across different distribution platforms.
For Nielsen clients, a new artificial intelligence-powered interface will allow programmers and ad buyers to use natural language queries to sift through audience data, Nielsen said. Following testing and a phased introduction, the products are expected to inform Nielsen’s existing audience reports, including future editions of its monthly television consumption report called “The Gauge.”
Nielsen did not reveal the name of any of its products or offer firm dates on when they will launch.
The announcement comes as Nielsen continues to face criticism from broadcasters, streaming companies and sports rights holders over its ability to accurately measure increasingly fragmented television audiences.
Earlier this year, Nielsen delayed one of its monthly The Gauge reports after clients questioned changes to its audience measurement methodology. The controversy followed Nielsen’s adoption of new television universe estimates from the ARF DASH TV Universe Study, which contributed to changes in reported television consumption during February.
The Media Rating Council (MRC), which audits audience measurement services, separately identified irregularities involving Nielsen’s Big Data + Panel product and called for improvements to its methodology.
Nielsen defended its adoption of the ARF DASH estimates, saying the changes were intended to provide a more accurate representation of television viewing.
Other media companies have questioned Nielsen’s measurement capabilities: In 2023, Nexstar Media Group sought proposals from alternative measurement providers, arguing that existing tools did not adequately capture audiences across its broadcast and digital properties. Paramount (now Skydance) temporarily stopped using Nielsen’s measurement products in September 2024 following a contract dispute involving pricing and the company’s ability to measure streaming audiences. The companies eventually reached a new agreement that expanded measurement to Paramount Plus and Pluto TV.
The National Football League has raised similar concerns about Nielsen’s products: Last year, NFL Chief Data and Analytics Officer Paul Ballew said Nielsen’s historical reliance on panel-based measurement had underrepresented audiences for major football games, particularly as more viewers shifted to streaming.
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