Analysis of the ratings system

OzTAM INTRODUCES VOZ

AUSTRALIA’S FIRST ALL-SCREEN INTEGRATED TOTAL TV DATABASE

Will provide total linear and online television (‘Total TV’) viewing with demographic detail, de-duplicated across devices.

Can integrate other datasets to support advanced audience targeting

Australia will have an integrated database that will combine broadcast viewing on TV sets and connected devices, and support advanced audience targeting, with the launch of OzTAM’s new service, Virtual Australia (‘VOZ’), in 2019.

VOZ brings together OzTAM TV ratings and OzTAM VPM connected device viewing data to deliver an all-screen, de-duplicated picture of what Australians are watching, who is watching, and how they are watching (‘Total TV’).

VOZ will incorporate viewing on 7 million connected devices plus minute-by-minute actual viewing behaviour of more than 12,000 individuals, 24/7/365, in OzTAM TV panel homes.

Conceived and being developed in Australia by OzTAM in conjunction with Nielsen, VOZ will be securely stored in the cloud and progressively roll out from the first quarter of 2019.

VOZ will crystalise Australia’s Total TV picture:

  • Advertisers and media agencies will be able to create media plans encompassing TV inventory across all broadcast channels and devices, and manage cross-screen campaigns – including overall audience reach goals. They will also be able to overlay other datasets on top of VOZ to support advanced audience targeting.
  • TV networks can determine the incremental reach from viewing on connected devices, and optimise their inventory across all markets, platforms and devices.
  • The media industry gains an objective, independent, consistent and transparent metric by which to evaluate the performance of TV content across all screens and platforms.

OzTAM CEO Doug Peiffer said: “There are 1.8 TV sets but a total of 6.6 screens, on average, in Australian households, and people are using them to watch television throughout the day – inside and outside the home. Prime time is now any time and OzTAM is building VOZ to report Total TV viewing.

“We’re proud to be working with Nielsen on this world-leading development. The positive feedback we’re receiving from media agencies, advertisers and broadcasters as we present VOZ indicates we’re meeting a significant industry need,” Mr Peiffer said.

Nielsen’s Head of TV Audience Measurement, David Ellem, said this next stage in TV audience measurement is a significant one. " “Nielsen is laser-focused on bringing to the Australian market the very best total audience measurement solutions available in the world. Delivering VOZ will enable this market to better understand audience targets across and between all devices, as well as provide the opportunity for advanced audience targeting for TV.”

OzTAM and Nielsen have for the past 18 months been developing, building and testing the components needed to deliver VOZ, including:

  • Increasing the number of households in OzTAM’s TV ratings panel by 50 per cent in 2017, to make OzTAM TV ratings even more robust as Australia’s population grows and people spread their viewing across many more devices and channels.

  • Every day, OzTAM samples the actual viewing behaviour of more than 12,000 individuals, minute-by-minute, 24/7/365. Together, OzTAM and Regional TAM’s panels make Australia the world’s largest per capita people metered market.

  • Building out OzTAM’s Video Player Measurement (VPM) service, which provides minute- by-minute data on 7 million connected devices streaming participating broadcasters’ (currently ABC, Seven Network, Nine Network, Network Ten, SBS and Foxtel) TV content across all platforms and devices.

  • Introducing demographics into OzTAM’s VPM Report – on track for delivery before the end of 2018.

  • Installing streaming TV meters in approximately 1,300 TV panel homes, to provide valuable insights into cross-platform viewing by household members; enhance demographic modelling of device-based viewing on household connected devices, which is collected by OzTAM’s VPM service; de-duplicate and identify linked device use; and deliver greater perspective on how people use their TV sets for purposes other than watching live or playing back linear television within 28 days of original broadcast.

  • Constructing the data handling, processing and production infrastructure to support VOZ.

About VOZ

A world-leading development by OzTAM and Nielsen, Virtual Australia (‘VOZ’) is an integrated database that brings viewing on TV sets and connected devices together, and supports advanced audience targeting.

VOZ combines:

  • television ratings currency panel data from over 12,000 individuals in OzTAM’s in-home broadcast TV measurement (TAM) sample;
  • streaming television meter data from more than 1,300 TAM panel homes;
  • online TV content viewed on 7 million connected devices (OzTAM’s VPM service);
  • population information from more than 50,000 establishment survey questionnaire responses per year for the TAM service; and,
  • Australian Bureau of Statistics population data.

VOZ delivers demographic profiles for the audience viewing participating broadcasters’ television content on connected devices using a combination of:

  • panel-based measurement of household members’ viewing across devices;
  • total device viewing information via VPM;
  • the repertoire of programs watched on devices over time; and,
  • insights derived from the audience profile to the corresponding broadcast program (i.e., OzTAM TV ratings).

The VOZ integrated database draws on all these information sources – ABS population and Establishment Survey data; TV ratings; information from streaming TV meters; and VPM data on connected device viewing – to create a model profile of Australian households and people.

This completely anonymous profile data will be valuable to anyone wanting to better target viewers and allow advertisers to buy on both demographics (age, sex) as well as interests and needs (e.g., pet owners, mortgage-holders, frequent travellers, health conscious). It will also allow the overlay of external (first, second and third party) data sources to further support advanced audience targeting.

Seven West Media CEO Tim Worner has called for an end to overnight TV ratings, during a Think TV dinner panel.

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OzTAM appoints Adrian Bogdan Vasile as Projects Director

OzTAM today announces Adrian Bogdan Vasile’s appointment to the newly created position of Projects Director.

In this key client-facing role, Mr Vasile will direct the execution of project plans and manage timelines as OzTAM brings new products and initiatives to market.

Reporting to OzTAM’s CEO Doug Peiffer, Mr Vasile will work alongside Director of Technical Services, Sylvano Lucchetti, and the wider OzTAM team to ensure progressive service enhancements continue to meet client needs.

Mr Vasile will start in early November and joins OzTAM from Nielsen, where he has been Director of Product Leadership for Nielsen Media Impact – a cross-media planning platform – and, most recently, the company’s Consumer & Media View products.

Mr Peiffer said: “Changes in the television and video viewing landscape have seen OzTAM’s service evolve rapidly over the past few years.

“With our team heavily focused on product development, we need an executive wholly dedicated to client relations, to keep OzTAM subscribers fully across and engaged in our efforts to measure and report the myriad new ways of viewing content.

“Adrian’s extensive and varied experience in audience measurement and media planning – spanning product development, project management, marketing and customer service – make him ideally qualified for this new client-facing role.”

Mr Vasile said: “After working on all sides of the media and advertising spectrum I am returning to the core of it. I look forward of helping OzTAM and its stakeholders to reach and implement the next phase of content viewing measurement.”

Mr Vasile’s 20-plus year career spans all major media channels and encompasses media planning, product development, digital marketing and consumer insights.

He has spent the past two years with Nielsen in Australia and before that was a strategy consultant for the Australian Marketing Institute.

Mr Vasile began his career in 1997 with Zenith Media in Bucharest, Romania, as a Media Planner. He then spent eight years with Starcom MediaVest Group in Bucharest, starting as Outdoor Media Manager and was subsequently promoted to Executive Director of Direct Marketing. Later roles included Country Manager for Reader’s Digest in Romania and Bulgaria; CEO of Central and Eastern European outdoor media group, Epamedia; and International Business Development Director for the B2B division of Tarsago Media Group in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE).

He earned an engineering degree from Bucharest Polytechnic University.

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OzTAM has advised that ratings for yesterday (November 2) will be delayed until Sunday, due to Telstra network outage in NSW, Victoria and Tasmania.

@TV.Cynic Is there any particular reason why only Seven use “M-” to denote a film in ratings codings? Or more to the point, why other networks don’t use this symbol?

I do think it is smart as there are TV shows with the exact same name as movies.

NB/
Years ago when the ABC used to air movies (stopped after ~2011?) I believe they also adopted the “M” for movies in ratings codings.

A new ratings year starts today, Sunday 30 Dec, with official ratings commencing week 7 on 10 February.

This table shows the estimated TV audience for each of the 5 city markets that will be used by OzTAM for its 2019 analysis (in '000’s) plus the population for 2018 and 2017 and the increase over the 2018 year. 2018 was the first year that Melbourne potentially had the highest TV audience. This year OzTAM are expecting a 1.4% higher population in the 5-city catchment area than 2018. The increase from 2017 to 2018 was 1.0%.

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OzTAM will resume normal delivery of ratings information 2 January.

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The 2018 28-day consolidated numbers are now posted

https://forums.mediaspy.org/t/2018-year/6903/3?u=tv.cynic

The reports are quite wide so you might have to adjust your Interface text size found under Preferences in your profile settings.

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Nine chief sales officer Michael Stephenson, who also represents the network on OzTAM, has some interesting comments regarding ratings during a Mediaweek podcast last week.

(Stephenson) said “survey” periods don’t matter any more. “I haven’t used the word in many years. People watch television from January 1 to December 31 and that is when advertisers buy inventory. There is no such thing as a non-survey period. It should be 52 weeks a year."

There have been a few comments on Mediaspy that Easter is in a two week non-ratings period.

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Well, ratings are measured every day of the year but the “official ratings periods” are 40 weeks of the year. 2 weeks off at easter and 10 weeks off in summer.

Obviously hasn’t seen Nine’s Easter schedule!

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could there be a way of getting an agreement with regional tam ???

If Michael Stephenson is true to his word, then is it possible that Nine will air a reality show (doesn’t have to be Married at First Sight) during Easter? Easter Sunday falls on April 12 next year.

No

and people wonder why fta is slowly dying !

I see where you’re coming from but

  1. the reasons FTA is dying are obvious and people aren’t wondering.

  2. Mediaspy offering RegionalTAM ratings ain’t gonna solve FTA’s issues.

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yeah i know , but still

It would make sense for OzTAM and RegionalTAM to merge. The ratings boxes are the same and Nielsen is the contractor for both. And RegionalTAM supplies the subscription ratings to OzTAM so that Foxtel can report national ratings, and the commercial networks also get national ratings. Nine and Seven already own part of both companies. It seems like unnecessary duplication to run two companies.

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My thoughts exactly! How contradictory. Nine are without a doubt utilising the Easter ‘break’ with non-top rating fillers and movie re-runs for 2 weeks and clearly (and conveniently) launching Q2 on… Ratings return night :thinking:

While its been an ongoing debate for a while now, there are still some potential issues.

  1. Networks have publicly stated and made it clear they only look to metro (i.e.) where the advertisers look.

  2. It could make program rankings and looking at performances harder and more convoluted.

  3. Metro is more nationally balanced (it’s not perfect), but compared to regional which is heavily inflated by the much larger regional populations in NSW and QLD (compared to Victoria, Tasmania and WA). And more troubling, regional SA isn’t even measured (even though Adelaide is) and you have places like Canberra coming under NSW and would Tassie be included or not, etc.