Nielsen begins monitoring TiVo usage
Published: 06 Aug 2002 16:06 BST
The Nielsen rating system for television shows is now playing on TiVo devices -- a few, anyway.
TiVo and Nielsen Media Research have developed software that allows the audience measurement company to extract viewer information from TiVo's digital video recorders.
For now, Nielsen is excluding data from households with DVRs from its industry reports, but it is trying to piece together a sample that will reveal "the impact of TiVo... upon established viewing patterns."
"We are now in the early stages of looking at data," Nielsen chief executive Susan Whiting said in a memo Monday.
DVRs collect information about what shows subscribers prefer to watch so that services such as TiVo's can make recommendations on other shows that a viewer might like. The process is anonymous, but privacy groups have expressed concern about what DVR companies could do with the information they gather.
TiVo has consistently found itself in the position of having to carefully balance the interests of its customers with the interests of the industry.
Nielsen has been collecting data daily from only 10 households with the devices. Although that sample is a small portion of the 422,000 subscribers to TiVo's service as of April 30, it is enough to get some preliminary data to share with clients, according to Whiting's memo.
A Nielsen representative confirmed the memo Tuesday and said the plan was to start with the first 10 households and "go from there." It's too early to determine what impact DVRs would have on the company's research, the representative said.
In her memo, Whiting said that capturing DVR usage patterns into Nielsen's reports is vital since the company's ratings are the "the currency for more than $60 billion in advertising spending in the United States."
Whiting added that extracting data is just the first step. The companies are working to develop "new business rules, editing and crediting criteria, new calculation and data processing software, and, ultimately, implement 'playback-based' reporting systems." TiVo's device functions like a VCR, allowing playback of programs but with a great deal more flexibility.
The software was downloaded to TiVo devices across the country but remains inactive unless households become part of the Nielsen system and give permission for it to be switched on, the memo said.
The companies have been working on the software for nearly two years.
Who's watching you? Get the latest on spy networks such as Echelon and Carnivore, as well as privacy issues for companies and individuals alike, at ZDNet UK's Privacy News Section.
Have your say instantly, and see what others have said. Go to the ZDNet news forum.
Let the editors know what you think in the Mailroom.
Did you find this article useful?
35 out of 88 people found this useful
Digg
Slashdot
Del.ici.ous
Stumble
Reddit
