• May 7, 2007

The Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau (CAB) Friday said it formed a new commission focused on the development of TV commercial ratings processes and standards. The CAB said the committee includes representatives from networks, agencies, Nielsen, Donovan Data Systems, and various third-party processors of Nielsen's data, and that the goal is to "craft forward-looking standards that ensure commercial ratings can become an accurate, stable and fully understood currency for marketers and advertisers to utilize." The move follows the CAB's efforts to boycott and derail Nielsen's initial plan to deploy average commercial minute ratings earlier this year.

The CAB said the following people have indicated plans to participate in the so-called "Commercial Ratings Commission:" MindShare's Marc Goldstein; Carat's Andy Donchin; PHD's Judy Vogel, the Association of National Advertisers' Robert Liodice; Donovan's Michael Donovan; Nielsen's Sara Erichson; the Media Rating George Ivey; Magna Steve Sternberg; as well as as-yet-unnamed executives from Starcom MediaVest Group, ZenithOptimedia and Horizon Media Inc.