Nielsen Buys Sports Sponsorship Analyst vBrand

Nielsen has acquired Israel-based vBrand, which has developed a machine learning-enabled platform for real-time sports sponsorship measurement, planning and data analytics. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

vBrand, which was founded by Tamir Rubinsky and Eli Ben-David, uses image recognition technology, along with proprietary artificial intelligence (AI) and deep learning applications, to determine sports sponsorship exposure valuations across linear TV, digital TV, the web and social media. The platform automatically detects on a frame-by-frame basis whenever a sponsor's logo is visible to the human eye, while simultaneously weighing factors impacting each sponsor exposure such as duration, size and image clarity.

vBrand and its technology will be integrated into Nielsen Sports, which Nielsen says will 'significantly' accelerate the speed at which its own logo recognition and media monitoring technologies locate and calculate brand positions on screen. According to Nielsen, this should allow brands and rights holders to monitor and track sponsorship visibility within hours of an event, and make adjustments to digital signage and social media campaigns within a tournament, competition weekend or season.

Howard Appelbaum, President, Nielsen Entertainment, comments: 'Bringing vBrand's technology into Nielsen Sports' existing sponsorship valuation process will further expand the scale of programming and events it covers around the world. It will also provide timely exposure information, enabling clients to make smarter and faster decisions on sponsorship placement. Nielsen Sports' brand exposure data and metrics are considered currency in the global sports marketplace, and we're delighted to strengthen that further with this acquisition'.

Web sites: www.nielsen.com and www.vbrandsports.com .