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Cox Radio Renews Arbitron Contract, Continues Tests with Rival
US group Cox Radio has signed a five-year renewal contract with radio audience measurement firm Arbitron, to gather ratings and related services across the company's eighteen markets.
The agreement covers Arbitron's Portable People Meter (PPM) ratings for Cox's four stations in Houston – the second PPM market which goes live next week – as well as seven other markets on the PPM roll out schedule. In Houston, Cox joins Arbitron PPM subscribers CBS Radio and Univision Radio.
Cox has been a vocal critic of the PPM, and is one of five radio groups supporting the test of a rival ratings methodology, using the Ipsos/Media Audit smart cell-phone. Whereas the pilot product is built into a respondent's own mobile phone, the PPM uses a passive audience measurement device to track consumer exposure to media and entertainment and has to be carried separately.
In February Cox agreed to encode its stations in Houston following Media Rating Council accreditation for the service (www.mrweb.com/drno/news6376.htm ).
Arbitron plans to roll out the PPM service in the top 50 markets over the next three years. The service went live in Philadelphia in March, and the first monthly ratings were delivered in late April. Arbitron and Cox Radio are online at www.arbitron.com and www.coxradio.com .
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