That was another big question between the radio industry and Nielsen. And while there certainly wasn’t a lot of money being made with ad insertion (and many online commercial breaks sounded downright awful with loads of PSA’s and clunky transitions back to music) the industry was, at least, attempting to cover some of the high costs to stream. Here’s how we understand this will work, with a little help explaining from our friends at The Research Director.
Here’s how Nielsen explained this issue to us. “Based on industry feedback, we will provide buyers and sellers with the ability to combine over-the-air and digital streams as they see fit, regardless of ad model. Total line reporting criteria (TLR) does not change: only stations with 100% simulcast content and ads — and with listening occurring in the station’s home market- can be combined in a Total Line.
So what does all of this really mean? Stations that simulcast in the metro can continue to report those on one line. Stations will only receive credit for digital listening within the metro. And Nielsen will make it possible to combine a stations’ over-the-air numbers with their stream even if they are not 100% simulcast.
