NBC is trying to get Nielsen Media Research to move sweeps week in February, 2009. The reason for this is due to the nationwide switch to pure digital television scheduled for February 17th of that year.I can understand NBC's point of view. Advertising is their primary source of revenue and anything to mess with that model could only negatively impact their bottom line. I'm surprised more of the networks haven't jumped onto this bandwagon.
That being said, I think the entire television ratings system is outdated and requires a serious overhaul. The switch over to digital represents a good opportunity to change this system into something that would be a more realistic tracking system than a few meters in a few houses.
With modern technology, isn't there some way to track ratings for everyone all the time? This could have saved quality shows like Arrested Development from cancellation. The flip-side of that theory is the intrusion of privacy to one's television viewing habits. I'm sure there are some who would hate for the public to learn of their love for The Girls Next Door or Flavor of Love.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
2-09-2008 @ 2:45PM
segsig said...
Seriously, you don't get why nbc is the one to want the change? They've been sucking the most wind with ratings. As you said, "advertising is their primary source of revenue"; well in December they were giving money back. The other networks haven't had that problem and while things were looking good for nbc through the strike that is now coming to an end.
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2-09-2008 @ 4:18PM
Jimmy said...
It would be nice if Nielsen would use the Internet to collect data. Of course, it would need to be password protected and couldn't be accessible to all viewers, but using the Internet would allow Nielsen to increase the number of households it tracks to the point it could be far more accurate with minimal cost. A year ago I got a call from Nielsen asking if I would like participate in tracking my viewing habits with a diary. I was kind excited about that, but when it came right down to it, I didn't have time to constantly write down my viewing habits and with DVR it was just too much of a hassle. I ended up not returning the diary. If I could have logged on to the Internet and posted my viewing habits it would have been much easier and Nielsen would have had more accurate numbers much quicker. Moreover, the whole idea of sweeps is annoying. Why is this even necessary is the modern age?
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2-09-2008 @ 4:59PM
Doug D. said...
It's a slow process at the moment, but Nielsen is placing people meters in more and more markets. I believe they have the meters in the top 15 markets at least. And placement in other markets should kick into high gear in the near future.
Those really do make for a year-round sweeps period, since you see on a daily basis not just a station's rating and share but demos as well.
I think in the not-to-distant future, sweeps periods will be a thing of the past.
And, in regards to February 09, there is also a push to do away with the book entirely. Stations are willing to pay for it, they just don't want the numbers recorded since there could be a significant skew with the switch over to digital.
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2-09-2008 @ 9:47PM
AJ said...
well if all shows are rated with the same system then their ratings should go up (or down) by roughly the same percentage if every single tv was accounted for.
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2-10-2008 @ 2:17AM
janjan454 said...
IT would be scarey if 'they' would know our viewing habits... = )
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2-10-2008 @ 2:29PM
kip said...
I'd gladly allow Time Warner to monitor my television viewing habits (I'm sure their DVR box is capable of doing it) and sell reports **IF** they would drop $15 a month from my bill.
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2-10-2008 @ 10:25PM
nick said...
I don't agree with sweeps and I'd much rather see them go away than to alter a sweeps timeframe.
So you have this bubble when networks offer better programming to entice viewers so they can generate more ad revenue. Then the rest of the time, they're offering re-runs, repurposed shows from other networks, Dateline 7 days a week, etc etc.
It's not indicative of the year as a whole, and it's an antiquated system.
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