An industry oversight board has restored accreditation to Nielsen’s national TV ratings more than 18 months after it was suspended.
The Media Rating Council, which sets standards for measuring viewership, said Monday it lifted the suspension after Nielsen addressed several issues related to underestimating viewership early in the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nielsen has made significant efforts to resolve the issues that led to the loss of MRC accreditation 19 months ago and to restore key aspects of the panel’s performance,” said George W. Ivie, executive director and CEO of the council. “The MRC’s audit has shown that these efforts have been successful, and as a result our TV committee and board agreed that accreditation should be reinstated.”
Ivie noted a commitment from Nielsen to improve its estimates of broadband-only households in the company’s national TV sample, and “improve the disclosures it provides to users about the variability associated with its TV viewing estimates” as key factors in recovery.
Lifting the suspension doesn’t quite wipe Nielsen’s slate clean with the council: Accreditation of its local TV ratings product is still suspended and other Nielsen offerings – including the Nielsen One initiative, which will provide cross-platform metering – are still under review. audit.
The Media Rating Council suspended Nielsen’s accreditation in September 2021 after networks and advertisers complained that Nielsen had demoted its national sample in the early months of the pandemic and failed to take sufficient steps to address those issues. The suspension opened a door for other analytics providers to gain a foothold in the industry.
