With the rise of Internet viewing, Nielsen has finally found a way to integrate that into its traditional ratings system. This could help shows that draw sizeable audiences after they air in the long run. It will also help advertisers to better understand the demographics that use devices to watch shows online.
Nielsen announced a new software developer kit (SDK), which will be available for broadcasters and content providers to see how people are watching their programming outside of the usual TV viewing window.
According to CNET, this will include DVR, Internet TV and mobile device viewing. So, if you are watching Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on your iPad, that data may finally be used to track the show’s overall audience.
The introduction of the SDK, which should be available by mid-November, notes Techcrunch, isn’t too much of a surprise. Although Nielsen has been behind on tracking online viewing, they finally announced earlier this year expand the definition of a ‘television’ to include gaming systems and broadband through a new device. The SDK will also include viewers using Aereo, Netflix, YouTube and other services.
Nielsen said it will track online streams through watermarks and metadata in order to determine the device being used. Census-like data to provide the demographics of viewers will come from services like Facebook. (Nielsen is also working with Twitter to track conversations.)
image: ABC