FTC Won't Regulate US Ratings

America's Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has told Congress that it will not be formally monitoring the accuracy of media ratings, and that it believes Nielsen did not misrepresent its Local People Meters or fail to disclose 'material facts' about the system. The Commission says self-regulation via the Media Rating Council appears to be working.

Nielsen, who the FTC said was 'acknowledging problems and working to correct them', praised the decision and said it should end the discussion of whether there should be government oversight of the ratings system.

In a letter replying to a request for clarification from Maryland Congressman Albert Wynn (D-Md.), FTC Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras said it was not up to the Commission to judge 'whether the LPM or alternate systems now in use - which have shortcomings as well - come closer to the actual truth of audience viewing behavior'. She also said that Nielsen's media company clients are 'highly sophisticated and capable of evaluating the information Nielsen provides'.

Nielsen now wants to consider the matter closed: 'The Commission determined clearly that the marketplace is working and there is no need for government regulation of TV ratings'. However, Sen. Conrad Burns (R-Mont.), a senior member of the Senate Commerce Committee who held hearings on the meters last year, immediately expressed his dissatisfaction with the FTC's decision and urged the Commission to reconsider given 'Nielsen's status as a monopoly' and that it 'does not take the public interest into account as clearly and consistently as it should'.

The LPM controversy began a year ago when Fox Television and other TV groups said the system failed to accurately measure minority TV viewing. A pressure group, 'Don't Count Us Out' was formed to argue this to legislators and has since run an aggressive campaign to seek regulatory oversight of the ratings.

A further Nielsen statement replied 'Given this clear signal from the FTC, we believe the very small number of media companies who favor government regulation would do a real service to the TV industry if they'd drop their self-serving fight against Nielsen and work co-operatively with us in the MRC'.

Nielsen Media has a specific web site detailing its actions to ensure fair representation, at www.everyonecounts.tv

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.

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