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Buyers, Sellers Move Closer on DVR Data, Commercial Ratings

It’s beginning to look as though media buying agencies and broadcast networks may not be facing the pitched battle about what currency will be used in the upfront as was originally thought.

Several off-the-record conversations with agencies and broadcast network sales executives have revealed that a compromise may not be too hard to agree upon, writes Mediaweek. Agencies have been saying that, if networks want to include DVR playback data considerations during negotiations, then the agencies want ratings guarantees based on commercial ratings rather than program ratings. Commercial ratings are typically 5 to 6 percent lower than program ratings. DVR playback data, on the other hand, raises program ratings 5 to 6 percent, and thus mitigate the declines in live ratings this year over last. So the two data streams, in effect, cancel each other out.

But not all agencies have decided what tack they will take during the upfront.

What seems agreed upon at this point is that most players want to use commercial ratings at some point as negotiating currency. However, Nielsen is not releasing commercial ratings until the end of May and networks and most agencies want time to analyze the data before using it as currency.

As for DVR data, Nielsen’s new numbers released last week finally show just how many viewers are watching in time-shifted mode. Of the average 45.5 million weekly broadcast network viewers, 5.1 percent, or 2.3 million, are watching in playback mode within seven days. On Thursdays, TV’s highest-viewing night, 10 million of the 137 million viewers who watch Big Three network shows watch in time-shifted mode.

Donna Speciale, president of investment and activation at MediaVest USA, pointed out that networks still need to come to an agreement with her about how much credit they should get for DVR viewing since it is still questionable about how many time-shifting viewers actually watch commercials. Up to 60 percent don’t watch commercials at all, and “it is up for debate how much credit [the networks] should get.”

She also pointed out that MediaVest will not offer cable networks any credit for DVR usage, because there are only a few original cable shows that air in first run, with a lot of repeats. Repeats, she says, get almost no DVR viewing. John Landgraf, president/general manager of FX Networks, agrees that advertisers on cable networks are getting bonus impress they aren’t paying for, from DVR users. “It’s not really fair,” he says, adding, “If you’re buying cable, you’re getting DVR viewing for free.”