NEW YORK—Nielsen will launch a pilot program leveraging a new methodology enhancement to account more accurately for co-viewing, beginning Feb. 8 with Super Bowl LX on NBC.
The program, which will continue for high-profile sports and entertainment live events in the first half of the year, will better reflect total viewership for programming, especially live events.
The initial results from the pilot program will be released a few weeks after the delivery of Nielsen final Big Data + Panel ratings.
“Nielsen’s mission is to constantly push measurement forward and deliver the most accurate data ever. This co-viewing pilot builds on that mission, alongside our recent enhancements with Big Data + Panel, out of home expansion, live streaming measurement and our wearable devices,” said Nielsen CEO Karthik Rao. “Our clients produce live TV events that get the world watching. It’s our job to make sure we are accurately counting the audiences they meticulously build.”
The new pilot methodology for co-viewing better incorporates the use of Nielsen’s proprietary wearable measurement devices. These are worn on the wrists of Nielsen panelists and resemble a smart watch. The wearables capture audio from TV events, shows and movies, allowing for more passive measurement that does not require a formal log in process.
Co-viewing estimates from the pilot program will not be immediately included in Big Data + Panel ratings from Nielsen. As such, they will not be considered “currency” that advertisers transact on, but the pilot data will be made available to Nielsen clients following the delivery of Big Data + Panel ratings.
Nielsen clients will be able to share those findings publicly. Nielsen will provide additional impact data to clients later in the year before the co-viewing methodology is fully implemented into its suite of marketing intelligence products. It has the goal of incorporating the additional data in “currency” measurement for the 2026/2027 season, Nielsen said.
The co-viewing enhancement is the first phase with additional co-viewing enhancements planned beyond 2026.
More information is available on the Nielsen website.
