Nielsen, TV Networks Clash Over Data Upgrade That Might Favor Amazon

Nielsen’s efforts to introduce new elements to its audience-measurement technology are gaining steam, despite the concerns of executives at some of the TV networks on which it keeps tabs.

Nielsen on Thursday worked to show that some of the new features it wants to introduce to its products were on track to being ready for the marketplace, part of the start of an annual accreditation process before the Media Rating Council that could take up to two weeks to complete, according to five people familiar with the proceedings.

The measurement giant hopes to gain industry backing for its efforts to combine data from digital devices with panel data from actual people — and in doing so, could open the door to Amazon being able to have its own first-party viewership data for “” incorporated into Nielsen’s ratings for the sports program. Nielsen and Amazon have been working on this plan since 2023, and have enjoyed the support of the NFL. Nielsen previously hoped to implement first-party data in fall of last year, but backed off after the networks complained.

The meeting has stirred some tensions among the traditional TV networks, who feel Amazon may gain an early edge on them even though companies such as NBCU, Paramount Global, Warner Bros. Discovery and Disney all have proprietary data tied to their own streaming efforts that could be part of Nielsen’s calculations in the future. Fox, which at present does not stream its sports telecasts on a broadband service separate from its own broadcast network, would not — for now — be able to offer any such analysis.

This year’s accreditation process could represent “a pretty big moment” if enough of the 100 or so members of the Media Rating Council grant Nielsen approval to incorporate new sources of data, says George Ivie, executive director and CEO of the group, which is an independent body backed by the media and advertising industries that examines companies that provide audience-measurement services.

One person familiar with Thursday’s meeting said the number of attendees offering strong pushback did not represent the majority of those assemble, while another suggested some expressed a desire to grant accreditation for Nielsen’s new data until the company could make additional assurances about its ability to assimilate them into its ratings work.

Nielsen declined to make executives available for comment. Ivie declined to comment on Thursday’s exact proceedings, but acknowledged a meeting had taken place.

The national panel Nielsen uses to determine its TV ratings “is accredited, and we are going through a process where we look at renewing that accreditation. That’s not unusual,” Ivie says. “We don’t just give them an accreditation and go away. We audit them every year.”

The decades-old relationship between Nielsen and TV networks has grown increasingly more contentious in recent years. The networks feel the measurement company has moved too slowly to find ways to count viewers who watch programming in non-linear fashion. They have begun turning to upstart rivals such as VideoAmp, Comscore and iSpot — and doing deals with advertisers based on those companies’ methodologies. Nielsen in turn believes it has been working in good faith to enhance its capabilities.

Paramount Global on Thursday said it might drop Nielsen’s TV ratings of its programming if the two sides could not come to an agreement on a contract renewal. Paramount, which is under heavy pressure to cut $500 million from its balance sheet in advance of a merger with Skydance Media, said it would rely on VideoAmp data if its use of Nielsen was interrupted.  The current Paramount-Nielsen pact expires on September 30, and Paramount, which operates CBS, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon, among others, would be without Nielsen audience counts starting on October 1.

TV networks believe approval of the system will give Amazon an unfair advantage over them. And yet, Nielsen is in discussion with multiple clients about incorporating their first party data, according to one of the people familiar with recent proceedings.

Meanwhile, some of the networks have already started to use new kinds of measurement data in their own reports. Earlier this month, for example, NBCUniversal used both traditional Nielsen data, Nielsen’s “Big Data + Panel” analysis and information from Adobe Analytics to describe viewership across both the NBC broadcast network and the Peacock streaming service for its broadcast of the NFL kickoff game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens.