Nielsen responded to the plans announced by comScore to roll out cross-platform measurement this year by saying its ratings are the only ones available now and represent the gold standard for the industry.
“Nielsen has the only total audience measurement, comparable across all screens, available to the market now. All of our data is fully representative of the U.S. population, and we deliver truly independent measurement,” said Megan Clarken, president, product leadership for Nielsen in a statement.
comScore said it would begin offering its cross-platform measurement in time for the upfronts and have syndicated ratings available when the TV season starts in the fall. In January, comScore acquired Rentrack, giving it set-top box data about TV viewing, which it is combining with its online measurement.
Some in the TV industry feel that with comScore and Rentrak getting together, Nielsen could feel heat from a competitor for the first time in decades. Nielsen, meanwhile, is in the process of rolling out its own Ttoal Audience Measurement product.
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“There are myriad analytics options for the media industry, but Nielsen’s focus is on delivering the actual currency ratings data used for trading billions of dollars in advertising,” Clarken said in her statement.
“We welcome competition across the marketplace, and as the global leader in total audience measurement, we remain laser-focused on delivering industrial strength, superior quality, and gold-standard audited processes and methods to the industry,” she said.
