Fox’s public criticisms of the Nielsen ratings service have become the latest knock to the age-old system of counting how many people watch primetime shows — you know, the thing that determines whether series live or die. The criticism itself is boringly technical: The ratings giant recently did a study to determine why some Nielsen families were screwing up the way they record their viewing choices, so much so that the readings could be off by about 8 percent. In the ratings biz, especially these days as viewer totals shrink thanks to cable and DVRs, 8 percent can mean a lot. As in millions of dollars, which is why Fox is upset. (Nielsen responded that the study was meant just to fix internal problems, not to determine an actual margin of error.)Fox Networks Group chairman and CEO Tony Vinciquerra specifically questioned the numbers for TV’s biggest hit (and his net’s cash cow), American Idol: "It’s been a hugely successful season, yet the ratings are down 11 percent,"he said. "There are significant, double-digit gains in (the show’s)votes, and there’s been a huge response. We believe the show is doingbetter than we see in the ratings."
It’s the latest in a series of problems Nielsen: ABC President Steve McPherson also has questioned their accuracy recently, Miami-based station owner Sunbeam filed a suit claiming the company is a monopoly, and primetime ratings were delayed for days earlier this month because of a computer glitch. TiVo, meanwhile, has been inching closer to becoming an alternative to Nielsen.
But for all of its problems, Nielsen will likely live on for a while. First of all, the panicking networks can’t blame all their problems on Nielsen — numbers are plummeting because people are watching TV differently. Even my parents have a DVR, which means that trend has reached critical mass; I also know huge TV fans who don’t actually own TVs. (They watch everything online.) And BTW, cable hits and broadcast hits are approaching parity in terms of numbers, all hovering in the 6- to 12-million range. If people are voting more on American Idol, it’s probably just because more folks have figured out how to text and call in multiple votes, and a higher percentage of viewers are voting. (Again, I base this on unscientific Mom Data: If my mom can text it up for Adam Lambert, anyone can.)
What do you think, PopWatchers? Do the Nielsen numbers you read about seem accurate? Should TV networks find a better way to measure viewership?
Excuse me, this is Fox talking about ratings being off? The network that continuously brings shows on just so a few people will start liking them then rips them off the air? Don’t talk to a Firefly fan (or now T:SCC fan) about Fox and complaints about ratings…pricks…
Nielsen ratings should have gone a long time ago. They’re an inaccurate representation of who’s watching.
I’ve thought for a while now the numbers are suspicious. How could a show like Lost be the most downloaded show on itunes, have it posted on ABC.com, have people TIVO and DVR it, talk about it obsessively, have more websites than any show on TV (I read a stat somewhere about that but can’t remember where) – and not even crack the top 20 every week? Something doesn’t add up!
I’ve thought for a while now the numbers are suspicious. How could a show like Lost be the most downloaded show on itunes, have it posted on ABC.com, have people TIVO and DVR it, talk about it obsessively, have more websites than any show on TV (I read a stat somewhere about that but can’t remember where) – and not even crack the top 20 every week? Something doesn’t add up!
I definitely think we need better ways to measure viewership. For example, what about college students? They watch tons of tv, and there are a lot of them, but they don’t get tracked while living in a residence hall. I don’t know what the solution is (maybe equipping all new tvs with a tracking system? Focusing more on DVRs, web viewings, iTunes downloads and DVD sales?), but Nielsen is probably not the answer
I think the Nielsen ratings have to go. They do not reflect everyone who is watching the television. Like I know the nielsen ratings do not capture when I am watching BONES every Thursday night. It’s time to move on.
yeah they do destroy you and send old hacks to erase our life
and they get paid while you are there zombie slave
Idiot.
TV Week had a really intriguing column about the completely antiquated Nielsen system. I don’t know what kind of half-baked operation these guys are running, but if this was any other industry, they’d be exposed as a bunch of scammers.
http://www.tvweek.com/news/2009/05/adalian_column_nielsen_failure.php
Neilsen ratings are outdated and should have gone the way of the dinosaur a long time ago. I pretty much watch all my tv on my DVR or online now. I very rarely ever catch a show when it originally airs.
I think the neilsen ratings have been off for a long time and have really been showing their age in the last few years. I think it needs to be a combo of dvr numbers (and not just tivo, b/c most of the people I know have other types of dvr), online viewing, including things like itunes and hulu, and live viewing. Also I wish there was a way to show how compassionate fans are about a show. Like number of posts in message boards and stuff.
i would also like to point out that the antiquated nielson rating system is screwing daytime television series and viewers, too. just ask all the guiding light fans (myself included) who watch the show religiously, but actually have jobs and commitments that require us to push our viewing time from the live broadcasts using either DVR or internet content. i mean, this show airs at 9AM in boston and 3PM in atlanta, both EST. and CBS certainly did nothing to hide the fact that GL needed a 1.8 in the ratings to stick around, even though i’m sure CBS will be the next network to hem and haw about how the current system doesn’t accurately represent viewers. oh, really CBS, you don’t say. well you can suck it!
I’ve always thought the Nielsen rating system was outdated. Shouldn’t there be a technical solution, a way to measure exactly who is watching what? Cable and satellite receiver boxes “know” what you’re watching, why not just report that back to the provider and then to the networks? Sure it wouldn’t work for over-the-air or straight cable hook-ups, but they just revamped the whole TV spectrum with DTV, why not design a little upstream communication to make Nielsen extinct? It just seems like such a waste when shows with passionate fans get canned due to highly questionable ratings numbers.
I’m definitely done with Nielsen ratings. I want shows to be available on demand–then ratings could be the actual number of viewings: http://popculturecurmudgeon.wordpress.com/2009/04/30/would-on-demand-work/
Last year, another company came up with the content power rankings, which took into account online buzz: http://popculturecurmudgeon.wordpress.com/2008/03/12/content-power-rankings/
I think if Nielson wants to stay in the game they need to update their methods. First all DVRs sold or rented through Comcast etc., should give the renter the option to opt in to their viewing being tracked. Then a site like Hulu or something similar could track the number of downloads there are for current/new episodes of a show. This would be the best way of accurately showing how popular a program is. They would get current tv, DVR and internet downloads and could use the cable services to do so.
Nielsen was never accurate – its system was never distributed to differentiated households (e.g., different ethnic groups, living situations/orientations and so on). C’mon people, this shouldn’t be hard! Just have the DVRs track the shows that you have personally recorded and combine them the info from approved internet sites like Hulu.
Don’t think I’m right? Then consider the power of fandoms which brought back Family Guy, got Firefly to become a movie, demanded ABC to give 3 shows their mid-episode canceled programs on-air season finales, and the massive movements JUST this season that saved their favorite shows (like Chuck and Dollhouse).
The nielson rating system really needs a complete overhaul! Really only a select few watch TV live, with DVR’s, iTunes and most shows viewable online, those should all be taken in account as ratings. They might find out a lot of shows are doing better..than you think.