Developments in Media Measurement

Arbitron has announced new signings for its radio measurement device the PPM, as rumours suggest two more major corporations may join Project Apollo, its joint venture with ACNielsen. Meanwhile the ARF's Annual Conference has been told that the media industry 'needs to work cooperatively to provide advertisers with effective research' in the face of the media explosion.

OMD and PHD, two of the world's largest media services agencies and both part of the Omnicom Media Group, have signed a multi-year data services contract which includes the use of Portable People Meter (PPM(SM)) based radio audience estimates, and covers their US radio planning and buying activities.

The contract news follows VNU's recent decision not to work with Arbitron to develop the PPM for its main TV measurement service, of which the upside for Arbitron has been the freedom to push ahead rapidly with the PPM's deployment as a means of radio measurement. It will begin the rollout in the top 50 markets, beginning with Houston in July 2006.

Meanwhile Arbitron and VNU's joint venture, Project Apollo, may have more momentum: this week Kraft and Pfizer are said to have joined P&G, Unilever and SC Johnson in giving the single source media measurement and sales system their support, according to reports from MediaBuyerPlanner, quoted in MediaPost. Neither company has as yet officially announced its participation. The project has already installed more than 5,000 households with product scanning technology from ACNielsen and equipped more than 10,000 individuals in those homes with PPMs.

The 52nd Annual Advertising Research Foundation Convention & Expo is taking place in New York. In the keynote speech on Monday Randy Falco, President-COO of NBC Universal Television Group, invited the media industry to 'work together to design and measure new advertising strategies'. While acknowledging changes in media consumption and the rise in online spending, Falco insisted that 'broadcast television remains incredibly powerful' as an advertising medium and that 'network TV will continue to play a role in mass media as technology evolves.'

Others were keen to stress the power of newer media. In the subsequent panel discussion, David Cohen, Executive VP at Universal McCann Interactive, said the mass market reach of the Internet is as powerful as TV. 'In a single day, we can far surpass the reach of an entire week of TV' said Cohen. 'The Internet can do a very good job of generating mass reach. There is no medium better suited for the quick dissemination of information.'

The ARF is online at www.thearf.org , arbitron at www.arbitron.com and VNU at www.vnu.com

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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