# Nielsen will finally start tracking Netflix and Amazon video



## Athlon646464 (Feb 23, 2007)

*Nielsen will finally start tracking Netflix and Amazon video*

(engadget.com) - Nielsen, the holy vanguard of television ratings, has finally figured out how to track viewership from Netflix and Amazon's streaming video services. And when it launches next month, it could fundamentally change the sorts of shows you see from them. Since neither Netflix or Amazon offer detailed viewership data, Nielsen has developed a way for its rating meters to track shows by identifying their audio, the Wall Street Journal reports....

Full Story Here


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## djlong (Jul 8, 2002)

Except it's not needed. Amazon and Netflix know EXACTLY how many people watch EXACTLY which shows and when. They can determine whether or not a show warrants it's budget. Nielsen can't say anything the programmers don't already know.

...unless the real goal is to unlock the secret data mentioned above and scare the other broadcasters into buying more of their service.


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## James Long (Apr 17, 2003)

It sounds like the goal is to count the missing viewership when a metered family watches something via Amazon or Netflix. It will count just like they watch it via broadcast or cable.


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## Christopher Gould (Jan 14, 2007)

Recently I did a one week Nielsen survey and I was told to write everything down I watched in the diary. Satellite, DVRd, discs, and streaming. Just list exactly what it was time and all that.


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

Not sure I understand this either... As noted, Netflix and Amazon already know this information... and even if Nielsen counted and told about shows as compared to people watching those same shows on traditional broadcast television... it does nothing to help TV stations set advertising costs, which is the whole point of the Nielsen ratings anyway.

Netflix and Amazon are already monetizing their viewership with the info they already have.


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## James Long (Apr 17, 2003)

Nielsen provides statistics for media companies who want them. As long as someone is willing to pay they will provide as accurate of a count as possible. While others or the delivery companies could provide some information about who purchased or streamed the content, the results do not come with the backing of the AC Nielsen company.

Having Nielsen provide figures for Amazon and Netflix provides independently audited information. It also expands the ratings to the person watching (if individual meters are used by each member of the household).


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