NEW YORK — Among the many activities occurring this week, aside from Forecast 2022, that involve the broadcast television industry was the first-ever “Measurement Innovation Forum,” hosted by NBCU.
The owner of NBC and Telemundo enjoyed representation from every corner of the industry. Following the Forum, former Nielsen thought leader Kelly Abcarian, today NBCUniversal’s EVP/Measurement & Impact for Advertising & Partnerships, shared an update on the Measurement RFP process with each measurement partner.
In comments shared Wednesday, Abcarian addressed forum attendees by noting that she and her peers “thought we knew the measurement landscape.” But, once NBCU put out a call for RFPs, a wholly different portrait emerged.
“We did not expect the level of response we received,” Abcarian said. “We thought we were casting a wide net by asking 50 companies to reply, but to date we have received over 100 responses and counting.”
Indeed, more than 100 companies “raised their hands and said, I have something unique to offer. Give me a chance.”
For Abcarian and NBCU, that translate to more than 100 potential partners with more than 100 potential solutions. “That’s amazing,” she said. “The next great measurement companies are waiting for us. And, we owe it to you, and owe it to ourselves to educate our industry about what’s out there, what is real today and what is capable soon.”
Abcarian has emerged as perhaps the most outspoken advocate of measurement modernization, following a 16-year career at Nielsen. There, she had been a highly visible member of the company’s global audience measurement team. And, until April, it was assumed Abcarian would be transitioning to Roku, following the April 16 purchase by the company — hammered on Wednesday by a key Wall Street analyst — of Nielsen’s Advanced Video Advertising business.
Addressing Forum attendees, Abcarian continued, “We are truly at the precipice of the most exciting yet transformational time in measurement and impact analysis for our industry. We have challenged the status quo and are working to create a more transparent measurement evaluation framework that is not only trusted but interoperable. But as with any major innovation, to achieve such a goal takes time … and quite honestly, more time than we anticipated given the outpouring of options.”
At NBCUniversal, Abcarian believes strongly that the company “can get it right.” But, it needs the time “to be diligent, thoughtful, and meticulous” in its review process. She added that NBCUniversal “has committed significant resources to evaluating all 100+ RFP submissions” it has received and updated its timeline. “We will be reaching out to key potential partners after the start of the new year to begin a process to certify an initial set of companies to bring forward into this new and exciting time in measurement,” she said.
Between now and then, NBCU will begin to share its learnings about all new measurement capabilities as part of its Measurement Innovation Task Force and the related VAB Measurement Innovation Task force, as well as with the general public.
“We are excited to be building a stronger measurement future together,” Abcarian concluded.
