• BNet, Wednesday, May 13, 2009 9:30 AM

Arbitron says the defection of radio broadcasters to Nielsen for diary-based ratings services will hurt Arbitron revenue by about $10 million per year starting in 2010. The statement, made in the company's Q1 earnings report, may be too optimistic.

Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media have said they signed with Nielsen because of improvements in audience recruitment measures. However, the true reason might have more to do with costs -- Arbitron customers have long complained about its fees. To fight back, Arbitron is working to strengthen the sampling quality in its diary-based ratings, including adding cell-phone only households and promoting online options to paper-and-pencil non-responders.

But the truth is that radio broadcasters are more concerned with the cost of data collection than its accuracy. If Nielsen offers Arbitron customers cheaper audit fees to switch their dials, Arbitron will need to revise upward that expected $10 million in lost annual sales.

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