This post was originally published on this site
TV ratings have long been central to how we understand audience behavior. We need to know what people are watching, when they’re watching and how programs perform. For programmers and syndicators, this data is critical. Age/gender-based average quarter-hour (AQH) ratings also play a valuable role in pricing sponsorships, selling sports and packaging primetime or marquee tentpole events.
But for planning and selling base TV campaigns, scatter buys and local schedules, are AQH ratings still the right currency?
The answer is increasingly no.
Broadcasters and agencies have used age/gender ratings for decades, relying on well-tested formulas for reach and frequency. These have historically driven results, but the media landscape has shifted. Buyers are evolving. They’re leaning into alternative currencies, streaming platforms and impression-based planning because they offer better data, better targeting and better outcomes.
In a recent column, I highlighted a massive discrepancy between impression estimates from one of the industry’s measurement currencies and those from an ad intelligence firm. While their methodologies differ, the financial implications were staggering. For just one broadcaster, the difference translated to more than $500 million in unrealized value using modest CPMs. When extrapolated across all commercial broadcasters, the industry may be forfeiting more than $5 billion annually.
In an era where “flat is the new up,” that’s not a rounding error, it’s a missed opportunity of transformative proportions.
Beyond the opportunity for broadcasters to grow revenue, there are compelling reasons why impression-based planning and selling make sense not just for broadcasters, but for the entire ecosystem. We operate in a symbiotic