to create “alternate currencies” in time for the upfronts.
“For any version of Nielsen, current as-is or next after-sale, the ad industry needs are identical: deep disclosures and real transparency, commitment to the modernization that sharply increased competition demands, and increased collaboration rather than collision with their clients and customers,” says Sean Cunningham, president and CEO of the Video Advertising Bureau, a trade group that represents the TV networks to the advertising industry.
The networks aren’t the only ones that see the need for new measurement architecture. Procter & Gamble, one of the nation’s largest and most-scrutinized advertisers, indicates it wants a change. “There must be a better way,” said Marc Pritchard, the consumer packaged goods giant’s chief brand officer, in a recent speech.
Nielsen’s new owner is clearly betting that the company will still be part of the mix. The new measurement currencies being offered are ultimately backed by the networks, the equivalent of the student telling the teacher what grade homework should get. Many advertisers would still like an independent arbiter to sit in judgment of who’s watching their commercials.