Netflix and other streaming services have refused to officially release viewership numbers, as if doing so would reveal some major business secret. But that won’t stop Nielsen, which is in the business of figuring such numbers out. The company has reportedly figured out a way to track online streaming viewership, whether Netflix wants it to or not.
The Wall Street Journal obtained Nielsen client documents which show that Nielsen will start tracking streaming viewership next month. Nielsen will use a tool in its Nielsen meters that will analyze the audio of a show to identify what a viewer is streaming. However, this technology won’t work for mobile streaming, so that’s something Nielsen engineers are still working on.
Nielsen hopes that the effort will help provide its clients with better data on what shows draw more viewers online. Then, media conglomerates can decide which shows to hand out to Amazon or Netflix based on hard data.
“Our clients will be able to look at their programs and understand: Is putting content on Netflix impacting the viewership on linear and traditional VOD ?” Nielsen senior vice president Brian Fuhrer told the WSJ.
Netflix and Amazon did not comment on the WSJ story.
Back in February 2013, shortly after the first season of House of Cards launched, Netflix said it was the service’s most-streamed show, but refused to release actual numbers on how many subscribers actually watched the show.
Netflix is the exclusive streaming home of House of Cards, Orange is the New Black and the latest season of Arrested Development. Amazon’s exclusive shows include Transparent and Alpha House.
image of ‘Orange is the New Black’ star Taylor Schilling courtesy of INFphoto.com