Koenigsberg Says: 'Keep It Live'

Back in March, Nielsen made what it said was a final decision to pull the plug on live local TV ratings to make way for other ratings data streams such as live plus one day of DVR playback. But the decision may not be so final after all. Nielsen made the move over the strong objections of many of the industry's major media buyers who feel that playback viewing distorts the true local audience picture because many viewers skip through the ads. And the American Association of Advertising Agencies new Media Policy Committee chairman Bill Koenigsberg says the organization is far from done in its efforts to get Nielsen to reinstate the live ratings stream. Koenigsberg, founder and CEO of New York-based Horizon Media, said it was "incredibly disturbing" that Nielsen would make a unilateral decision to eliminate the live ratings stream over the objections of top buyers. "This issue is far from dead. We're just not accepting it," he said. Nielsen declined comment. Last month, just after Koenigsberg assumed the chairmanship of the 4A's Media Policy Committee, the organization issued new guidelines to help buyers negotiate deals for local TV time without live local ratings. In essence, the guidelines urge buyers to buy ads going forward using ratings estimates based on past live local audience trends. Or, if stations insist on using live plus same day ratings, buyers should demand "incremental bonus impressions" to compensate for the exaggerated amount of actual viewing due to ad skipping during playback. Koenigsberg cites the local ratings contretemps and the 4A's reaction to it as one example of the kind of proactive leadership style he plans to bring to the Media Policy Committee. "As the communications world has become much more prevalent in the marketing mix, the 4A's media leadership team has an incredible opportunity," he noted, to help shape future policy on a number of fronts. These range from privacy to procurement to measurement to diversity. Koenigsberg is also not shy about criticizing some recent 4A's moves. For example, he says that the decision last year to merge the leadership and media conferences was a good concept that could be better implemented and executed. "I'd like to see more global leadership attending the conference and having a voice and I'd like to see more traditional agency CEOs there as well," he said. Privacy is an increasing critical issue, said Koenigsberg, and he feels that the 4A's "needs to become a lot more proactive" in helping the industry, and the federal government, define privacy standards. "Part of that has to do with helping Congress navigate future implications of where media is going and what regulations should be put in place," he said. Talent is another issue where the industry has its work cut out for it, he said. "There's been a lot of collateral damage the past couple of years from the economic crisis as tens of thousands of people have been laid off from agencies and media companies," he said. "And many of them have left the industry." He added that the ad/marketing industry lags others in recruitment, given low starting pay and the failure to "market opportunities in our own backyard properly." Eventually, he said, entry-level salaries must rise to attract better talent. "There is so much real estate up for grabs as to who plays what role between creative, media, digital and search agencies," he said. "The people who recruit, pay and keep the best talent are the ones that are going to win." Agencies often complain that clients seem obsessed with costs and procurement, but Koenigsberg suggests that's not necessarily a bad thing. "It can work to everyone's advantage to make sure value is being properly built in [to client service]," he said. "It's about dialog and transparency, which I think we need more of so that everyone understands the different steps on the value equation."

Convergent TV

Koenigsberg Says: 'Keep It Live'

Steve Mcclellan

About

Subscriptions

Events

Publications

WORK SMARTER - LEARN, GROW AND BE INSPIRED.

Subscribe today!

Steve Mcclellan