Nielsen To Develop Online Planning Tool For UK

MediaPost Publications, September 29, 2009 — The Nielsen Company has been selected by UKOM, the UK Online Measurement body, as its official partner in creating the country's first online campaign planning tool.

Set to launch in January 2010, the UKOM Audience Planning System (APS) powered by Nielsen is intended to provide advertisers and agencies with the online reach and frequency metrics needed for media planning and buying.

Facebook Sets Deal to Provide Ad Data to Nielsen†

Wall Street Journal, September 22, 2009 — Facebook Inc. plans to announce a deal with online measurement company Nielsen Co., in a step to address advertisers' frustration with measuring how ads perform on the social network.Under the partnership, Facebook will begin polling its users about some of the display ads it runs on its site, such as a banner promoting a movie release.

Facebook will provide that data, including responses from those who didn't see an ad, to Nielsen, which will package it for advertisers, say the companies.

Nielsen on Notice: Industry Demands a Meatier Metric†

P&G, Unilever, Disney Form Coalition to Drive a Cross-Media Measure

Advertising Age, September 14, 2009 — The media and marketing business desperately needs a cross-platform measurement tool, and a gang of major players got together last week and let it be known that they're going to get one — with or without Nielsen, the longtime leader in tracking TV.

For Mobile Users, Texting Tops Talking†

Nielsen: Number of Messages Eclipses Calls for Second Straight Quarter

Advertising Age, September 23, 2008 — NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — The typical U.S. mobile subscriber sends and receives more text messages than phone calls. The trend toward texting has several roots, not the least of which is an inundation of new devices with integrated keyboards, like Nokia's N810.

Who's Most Likely to Buy Your Brand?†

Nielsen Connect CEO Jon Mandel Aims to Find Out

Advertising Age, August 6, 2008 — When he was one of the industry's top media-buying executives, Jon Mandel needed the equivalent of a rifle to target consumers, but all he had was a bazooka. Now he's gone from pressing the industry for better data to measure the effectiveness of commercials to building the rifle himself. As CEO of Nielsen Connect, he's charged with finding a way to move the industry away from traditional demographic-based media plans in favor of those that more directly influence consumer behavior.

NBCU, Nielsen Team on New Sales Measure†

Partnership Will Cull Data from TV Ratings, Online Video Streaming, Consumer Activity

Advertising Age, June 2, 2008 — NBC Universal and Nielsen have decided to collaborate on new sales measures using data from TV ratings, online video streaming and consumer activity based on specific industry categories. It's just the latest step by a TV network to cobble together information for advertisers that goes beyond the typical reach-and-frequency ratings that have been the benchmark of the business for decades.

The two companies said their alliance is designed to "move advertising sales beyond traditional demographic data" and promote the development of new sales and marketing measures.

Nielsen to Buy IAG Research for $225 Million†

Adds Qualitative Measurement to Quantitative Expertise

Advertising Age, April 7, 2008 — If Nielsen can't measure its way to continued dominance of an ever-shifting advertising world, perhaps it can buy its way into it. The media-measurement company today said it had agreed to purchase IAG Research, a company that measures viewer response to ads, TV shows and product placements, for $225 million.

Made to measure

CEO David Calhoun has a simple plan for Nielsen: Make gobs of money and reshape the future of marketing and media.

FORTUNE, March 1, 2008 — Under big blue letters declaring WE ARE NIELSEN, executives of the world's largest measuring company gathered in the ballroom of a resort near Fort Lauderdale for their second annual leadership retreat. Over two days in early January they trumpeted accounts won and targets achieved, and plotted Nielsen's plans for the year ahead, such as expanding its Internet ratings service into China. But a recurring theme was the company's need to improve - and fast - its spotty reputation with the clients that pay millions for its TV ratings data and retail market-share rankings.

Arbitron, Nielsen Scrap Apollo Project†

P&G Was Big Backer of Ambitious Market-Research Program

Advertising Age, February 26, 2008 — Arbitron and Nielsen Co. have pulled the plug on Apollo, one of the most ambitious, expensive and heavily hyped market-research programs in history.

Apollo aimed to determine once and for all how exposure to a wide variety of media and marketing tactics influence purchases by tracking consumers' combined media and purchasing habits in a single-source database.

Nielsen Looks Beyond TV, and Hits Roadblocks

As television watching has waned as a component of media consumption, Nielsen wants households to let it eavesdrop on its Web surfing and cellphone use.

New York Times, February 26, 2008 — Being part of a “Nielsen household” has long been a point of pride for people whose television habits are monitored by the Nielsen Company. In exchange for token compensation, these viewers know that their personal taste influences Hollywood and Madison Avenue.

But now that Nielsen wants households to let it eavesdrop on many more activities — from Web surfing to cellphone use — how far will people open their doors?

As television watching has waned as a component of media consumption, Nielsen has been trying to retool the way it collects ratings, to keep the figures relevant to the advertisers and media companies that are its clients.