NBCU Names iSpot A 'Certified' Measurement Partner, Plans 'Currency' Tests

NBCUniversal has announced its first “certified” measurement partner -- iSpot.tv, a real-time, second-by-second TV measurement company -- to test new currencies unifying cross-media consumption, reach and impressions for programming and advertising.

An initial test will start with iSpot.tv and media agency Publicis Media for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games and the Super Bowl LVI.

Under the effort, NBC and brands will access real-time data for linear, streaming and time-shifted viewing. Parties involved will also get next-day metrics -- verified ad impressions, reach and frequency, linear and streaming overlap and incrementality.

NBCU says these measures will offer household-level data and age/gender person demos, as well as customized audience segments.

NBC emphasizes, however, that this new “test-and-learn” approach will not necessarily eliminate the need for how measurement has been done for decades. For years, Nielsen has been the de facto currency using modest-size panel-based systems.

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Kelly Abcarian, executive vice president of measurement and impact, NBCUniversal Advertising and Partnerships, said in a release: “This is not a shift away from one panel-based system to another, but a definitive step toward embracing the metrics brands already use to evaluate media companies.”

NBC plans to form a new basis in how it negotiates TV/media deals during TV’s upfront advertising selling period, which starts in June for the 2022-2023 TV season.

John Muszynski, chairman of Publicis Media Exchange (PMX) U.S., agrees that the effort will serve as a framework.

In the NBCU release, he said clients will work through NBCUniversal’s supply-side platform (SSP) One Platform where “the results of this partnership will serve as the blueprint for the marketplace to transact using improved measurement during the 2022-2023 upfront cycle.”

For some years now, advertisers and brands have used iSpot.tv data for research and intelligence.

“Brands already use it for guidance, now they will be able to trade on it,” said Sean Muller, founder-CEO of iSpot.tv, in an email to Television News Daily.

NBCU and iSpot.tv will offer marketers attribution of TV and video ad exposures linked to consumers actions, including digital activity on websites and apps, in-store visits and call activity.

In addition, brands will gain lift activity and conversion data from their investment in NBCU to be used as a comparison to their total TV and video spend over the same time period.

NBCUniversal will announce more certified measurement partners over the coming months. More than 100 potential data partners have submitted proposals, so far, including Nielsen.

During the COVID-19 pandemic period, Nielsen admitted it failed to properly maintain some of its TV panel homes, due to engineers being unable to enter households because of lockdowns.

The Media Rating Council said, for example, that there was undercounting of 2% to 6% among 18-49 viewers in Nielsen Total Usage of Television (TUT) metric in February 2021.

1 comment about "NBCU Names iSpot A 'Certified' Measurement Partner, Plans 'Currency' Tests".
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  1. Linda Jason from IT, January 13, 2022 at 2:36 p.m.

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