Could Arbitron Win The New Media Measurement Race? by David Goetzl

With all the urgency to find a widely accepted cross-platform measurement system, one element of the chase involves going back to the future. Recall Project Apollo, the would-be breakthrough that looked to match media consumption with purchase data to get a better sense of the connection. The joint Arbitron-Nielsen initiative was abandoned in 2008, but the learnings and insight may be valuable in the new race to measure TV, Internet and mobile video consumption in an apples-to-apples way. A slew of measurement companies want to be the industry standard. Arbitron, with its portable people meter (PPM) device, might be able ...Read the whole story

TV Watching: One Coin, Two Sides by Mike Bloxham

Despite cries about traditional TV's demise, there is no real prospect of the distributors of TV content being left out of the game in the future. ...More

  • Episode 509: Hunger Games, Man Vs. Fish, And Putting The Man In Manischewitz! by Barbara Lippert

    Okay, bubelas. "Dark Shadows," the latest episode, certainly had a dark (and shadowy!) streak, in that it was all about competition, and the effects of jealousy. It was about working to get your mojo back, but still needing to poison the well of others who threaten you, even though you may have gotten "everything." ...More

  • Do Big Upfront Food Events Translate To Big Ad Dollars -- Or Ratings Indigestion? by Wayne Friedman

    To party or not to party? Everyone likes a good schmooze -- especially when it's connected to big-time television, and you can hang with Zooey Deschanel. ...More

  • Naturally Occurring Data by Bill Harvey, Mark Lieberman

    Over a half century ago, TV measurement was invented. Advertisers wanted to know whether their TV ads were effective. How to define "effective"? The ultimate answer: Did the ads drive consumers to action, to buy the product or service being advertised? This kind of detailed information was simply not available, so the industry settled for a weak proxy: Were my ads even seen? A sampling system was set up to monitor if the TV program was watched by a small number of panelists who had an "opportunity to see" the ads And these panelists had to be actively engaged, raising ...More

  • TV's Upfront: Six to Nine Times Bigger Than Online Video Spending for the Whole Year by Daisy Whitney

    This is a tough week for online video to get any attention. It's TV upfront time, and the broadcast networks are touting their new fall lineups to Madison Avenue. Sure, digital extensions and online video add-ons will be part of many shows' marketing efforts during the season, but the reality is online video won't get much play at the TV upfront. ...More

  • The Office: Unreality Bites by Gary Holmes

    What a disappointment the previous season of "The Office" turned out to be. A show that was once a glory of television comedy has now become merely "pretty good." Last year at this time, I pondered whether any sitcom could retain its creative energy for more than seven seasons, especially after the departure of its main star, and now I think we have the answer. Unlike other great comedies that decided to go out on top ("The Dick Van Dyke Show," "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," "Cheers" and "Seinfeld"), "The Office" clearly lingered past its natural end point. ...More