Corruption Claims over Turkish Ratings

TV ratings data supplied by AGB Nielsen for the Turkish market is the subject of corruption claims. After complaints filed by the country's Radio and Television Corporation (TRT), the Television Audience Research Committee (TÝAK) has apparently said it will change the system, and the supplier.

Reports in the Turkish press say that the TRT Directorate General filed a complaint with the Ankara Public Prosecutor's Office on June 16th under competition law, citing 'TÝAK's awarding of the ratings contract solely to AGB for many years and AGB's alleged irregularities in its selection of panel members, changes to panels and processing of raw data.'

AGB Nielsen is the sole supplier of TV ratings information for the country. The claims say that families chosen for its television rating measurements have been offered gifts by certain television stations, hoping to influence the country's $3.2 billion advertising spend. The allegations suggest that TV companies obtained lists of homes with People Meters, compiled by individuals who had followed the vehicles of the technical teams.

In an interview with the publication Today's Zaman (www.todayszaman.com ), TÝAK President Ömer Kayalýoðlu said his team 'had reason to believe 50 families in Ankara and Ýzmir had been compromised', adding: 'We asked AGB Nielsen to leave these families out of the system immediately.'

The TRT has also asked the Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) to issue an official statement regarding the situation and institute a system to verify the research firm's ratings data. Kayalýoðlu says he expects to see new rating-measurement technology from whichever company wins the new tender. The new supplier must also contend with an ongoing risk of corruption because, he says, 'the (installed) device is huge and standalone, making it easy to spot by a guest in the house.'

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