Media Research Veteran Bill McKenna Joins Arbitron

In the US, veteran media and ad measurement executive Bill McKenna has joined radio ratings giant Arbitron in the newly created post of Senior Vice President, New Media Ventures.

Most recently, McKenna was CEO and President at audience data firm Integrated Media Measurement, Inc. (IMMI), during which time, Arbitron acquired the firm's technology portfolio, patents, and trade name.

McKenna previously served as CEO of WPP-owned KMR North America and its Mediafax media research business unit, which he founded in the Caribbean region in 1988, and later sold to IBOPE Media. Earlier in his career, he was a Partner at Booz Allen.

In the late 1980s, he co-created Arbitron's ScanAmerica syndicated TV ratings service, which combined people meters with an in-home UPC scanner. During this period, he coined the term 'Buyergraphics', to describe ScanAmerica's audience metric, which integrated demographic ratings with measures of packaged goods purchases.

In his new role at Arbitron, McKenna will be responsible for identifying new business opportunities with a focus on new customers and market segments for the Arbitron Portable People Meter (PPM) technology. He will also support the company's international initiatives.

'Bill's decades of experience as an innovator in media research make him a perfect choice to develop new markets and platforms for our PPM technology,' says William Kerr, President and CEO. 'As current media continue to expand to new platforms and as new media emerge, Bill will work to establish Arbitron as an innovative and leading provider of media and market intelligence.'

Web site: www.arbitron.com .