Freesat Launches Live TV Audience Measure

In the UK, subscription-free satellite TV provider Freesat has launched a live audience measurement service, which shows viewer behaviour across channels and programmes gathered from more than 100,000 connected set-top boxes.

Freesat is a joint venture between the BBC and ITV, and its new service runs on an attribution platform developed by audience measurement firm TVbeat. Resulting data sets are displayed on an online dashboard, which can be queried by the user. As well as real-time linear TV viewing data, the service delivers behavioural information related to time-shifted and on-demand viewing, and this can be segmented by users' locations, viewing duration and resolution. Freesat says that broadcasters will be able to act on the data in real-time - for example by optimising programming within and around a show while it is still airing.

MD Alistair Thom (pictured) comments: 'The insights provided by a combination of real-time data, scale and granularity will, we believe, have a significant and positive effect on the broadcast industry. More importantly, it will benefit viewers, as it enables broadcasters to respond quickly and precisely to their preferences. Ultimately this real-time, granular measurement system will help to maintain a robust free-to-air TV market in the UK'.

Web sites: www.freesat.co.uk and www.tvbeat.com .