Nielsen Ratings

When TV viewers or entertainment professionals in the United States mention "ratings" they are generally referring to Nielsen Ratings, a system developed by the New York City-based firm Nielsen Media Research to determine which shows television viewers watch at what times. Other ratings systems include those developed by Arbitron for radio programming and the Q Score for general markets.

Related Topics:
TV - United States - Nielsen Media Research - Arbitron - Q Score

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Nielsen's ratings calculation, also called Cume Rating (or "Reach"), measures the number of unique viewers, listeners or more generally households, of a tv or radio program in a particular time period during a week. The Cume itself is calculated by dividing the number of unique viewers or households divided by the total number of estimated available households/viewers/listeners possible. This gives a percentage Cume rating. http://www.nielsenmedia.com/ratings101.htm

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The system as it exists today was developed in the early 1960s by Arthur Nielsen, and has since been the primary source of audience measurement information in the television industry. Since television as a business makes money by selling audiences to advertisers, the Nielsen Television Ratings are the single most important element in determining advertising rates, schedules, and program content.

Related Topics:
1960s - Arthur Nielsen - Advertising

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The company is owned by Dutch conglomerate VNU and recently relocated its production operations from its longtime home on Patricia Ave. in Dunedin, Florida to its newer Brooker Creek Global Technology and Information Center in Oldsmar, Florida.

Related Topics:
VNU - Dunedin, Florida - Oldsmar, Florida

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