The former CFO of the company once known as Tribune Media has taken similar duties for what will soon be known as Nielsen Global Connect.
That’s the segment of Nielsen that focuses on consumer research, and the first steps of its separation into an independent publicly traded company were seen in early May.
Chandler Bigelow was a familiar figure at Tribune Media, and spent 21 years at the organization which eventually merged with Nexstar Media Group, rather than Sinclair Broadcast Group.
“With close to three decades of proven success at public and private companies, Bigelow brings significant expertise in leading corporate finance strategy, with strong capital markets experience,” Nielsen said.
In prepared comments, Nielsen Global Connect CEO David Rawlinson said Bigelow “brings extensive leadership and financial expertise, with a consistent track record of creating value. I believe he will be a key asset to our success, as we advance towards operating as an independent, publicly-traded company and define the next century of consumer and market measurement.”
Bigelow added that it was “an exciting time to join the Nielsen Global Connect organization. Never in our lifetime has data analytics for the consumer packaged goods and retail sectors been more crucially important. Nielsen Global Connect is a key institution within the global consumer marketplace and I am proud to be a part of it.”
Linda Zukauckas will remain CFO of Nielsen, which will retain the data measurement business used by broadcast media across the U.S. and in other countries where Nielsen maintains a presence.
An initial Form 10 Registration Statement was filed May 7 with the Securities and Exchange Commission — a move needed to start the separation of Nielsen Global Connect into an independent publicly traded company.
The segment has been a laggard for Nielsen, as marketers and brand stewards have shifted to custom reports from demographic-based syndicated research in recent years. It would put Global Connect in direct competition, minus the audience measurement arm, with such consumer research firms as Mintel, GfK-iRi and Kantar Media.
Nielsen expects the spinoff to occur in Q1 2021, delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
