Broadcasting & Cable
Measurement firm Rentrak appears to be gaining momentum in its push into the broadcast business, announcing Wednesday that one of the largest station groups, Sinclair Broadcast Group, will test Rentrak’s new “StationView Essentials” system to measure viewing of seven stations in four markets. Sinclair is one of several large station groups who have expressed dissatisfaction with local TV ratings provided by measurement giant Nielsen.
Sinclair stations participating in the trial, which will use the Rentrak system to measure local station performance via set-top-box data, are: WSYX (ABC) and WTTE (FOX) in Columbus, Ohio; WCGV (MNT) and WVTV (CW) in Milwaukee, Wisc.; KABB (FOX) and KMYS (MNT) in San Antonio, Tex.; and KDNL (ABC) in St. Louis, Mo.. Rentrak says the agreement will include working with advertisers and agencies to combine direct marketing tactics with set-top viewing data.
The agreement will begin on January 1, 2010 and includes a long-term expansion option for all of Sinclair’s markets. Outputs will include analytics of total television consumption, and advertising buys based on engagement metrics derived through the StationView Essentials service. More…