It’s time for an overhaul of TV ratings

There is no doubt that linear TV is converging at pace with digital channels onto connected TV, but the advertising ecosystem isn’t keeping up.

The traditionally dominant 30-60 second TV spot still takes up most energy at creative agencies and that may be to the detriment of the brand campaign as a whole.

TV has always been the starting point for a marketing plan with the primary measures being reach and frequency.

But there’s a perfect storm brewing where audiences are leaving linear TV and flocking to consume media on digital channels, more often than not through their connected TV.

It is important to stress that this does not spell the immediate death of linear. Far from it. By any means, linear remains a vital part of the mix for advertisers seeking an efficient way to reach broader audiences.

However, marketers increasingly view Advanced TV as a complement to linear because it opens the door to specific audiences whom they wouldn’t reach with linear TV alone.

Most media plans now include streaming and/or digital video component, alongside linear, to engage with desired audiences.

Naturally, along with the convergence of TV and video channels comes a desire to understand the best mix of platforms to reach target audiences and drive outcomes and therein lies the black hole at the heart of the industry.

Unified measurement of Advanced TV is the goal, but it’s still a work in progress. So far, the ability to holistically value converged TV across linear, CTV/streaming, and digital for its reach, performance, and incrementality remains a challenge. Reliance on BARB’s panel – even when expanded to 7,000 homes – is not enough for advertisers to truly gauge the best use of their investment.

Digital media execs are helping to break down the traditional media buying silos in their own organisations. They report using a combination of in-house solutions, home-grown or external marketing models and third-party tools to measure the impact of campaigns.

But the entire industry, not just pockets of it, should be focussed on attaining high quality cross media measurement.

The problem is that the TV landscape is extremely fragmented. It’s one where multiple parties promote competing agendas stemming from different backgrounds.

Merging the traditional broadcast view about content and environment with the pure eyeballs metric of a digital background is tricky but it is not impossible.

The recent involvement of Netflix and Disney+ is promising but needs further development. The full launch of CFlight later this year should be the next big step forward for advertisers. Likewise, we look to the progress of the ISBA’s Project Origin as another major initiative toward a cross-media measurement platform. As an industry, we are moving in the right direction.

Pierre De Lannoy is EMEA Strategy Director at MiQ