• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, March 19, 2012

Nielsen has enlisted WPP’s GroupM unit in his campaign to make its new Online Campaign Ratings the “currency” of online media buys, as well as cross-platform planning and buying that has online as an integral element. The companies said GroupM and Nielsen will each “contribute resources and expertise to create Cross-Platform Campaign Ratings and make it available to GroupM clients.”

“It’s vital that we have consistent measurement, and that’s our goal in working with Nielsen,” stated GroupM Chief Investment Officer Rino Scanzoni, who previously played an integral role in shaping the ad industry around a common trading currency when he pushed the so-called “C3” ratings concept that is the current currency for the national TV advertising marketplace.

The move is the latest in an ongoing campaign by Nielsen to establish its Online Campaign Ratings as the online industry’s advertising currency. The ratings, which were unveiled to the industry last spring during the ARF’s annual conference, was followed by an unprecedented collaboration with industry watchdog the Media Rating Council that led one of the fastest accreditations of a new ratings service ever. In the months that followed, Nielsen executives have said they’ve been giving the data free to top marketers in the hopes they would sign on as subscribers to the new service.

In February, Nielsen announced a deal with Unilever, a big client of GroupM’s, to subscribe to the online campaign ratings, and a spokesperson said other undisclosed advertisers were also subscribing, as well as Tremor Media.

“Through working closely with GroupM and others in the industry we believe we can help create best practices that will benefit the entire ecosystem,” stated Nielsen Media Products and Advertiser Solutions President Steve Hasker.