• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, November 12, 2008

For years, ESPN sought some sort of measurement to track the large amount of viewers it said were watching its programming outside the home. Then Nielsen recently delivered an out-of-home metric. But last week, it pulled the plug, largely because only ESPN and Zenith Media subscribed to the service.

But before it was abandoned, the service--a co-venture between Nielsen and IMMI--showed that a notable amount of viewers were watching two prominent ESPN properties in bars, hotel rooms, and health clubs.

ESPN's Saturday telecasts of college football carried on ABC showed that total viewership increased 15% when out-of-home viewing was added to the traditional ratings.

Data shows that the Saturday ESPN college football games on ABC from Sept. 1-Oct. 19 drew an average of 3.4 million in-home viewers, while Nielsen/IMMI found that an average of 495,000 watched outside their homes. The out-of-home figures gave the total average audience (3.9 million) a 15% increase.

(In a slight discrepancy, the in-home figures cover a 12-to-54 demo, while the out-of-home numbers use 13-to-54.)

ESPN's "Monday Night Football" also posted a notable lift in total viewers when out-of-home ratings were added to compile a total, although the percentage lift was well below the ABC games. One reason: people are more likely to leave the home on Saturdays than Mondays.

Data for "MNF" games through Nov. 3 show that average in-home viewing was 8.4 million (12-to-54 demo). An average of 637,000 (13- to-54-year-olds) watched out-of-home. That's an 8% lift (total average viewing was 9.1 million).

Back in September, ESPN trumpeted the gains it received from out-of-home viewing of "MNF" after the first week. The season's first game --part of a doubleheader--posted 8.4 million viewers in traditional ratings (12- to-54-year-olds) and a significant 830,000 additional viewers (13- to-54-year-olds) watching outside the home. That was a 10% lift.

Nielsen suspended its Out-of-Home data streams last week after a failure to get enough networks and agencies to sign up for the service.