NBCUniversal has signed a significant partnership with iSpot.tv as part of its ongoing search for alternatives to Nielsen, the dominant TV ratings business whose methodology has been heavily criticized by the industry.

In addition to Nielsen, the company will be added to NBCU's list of official measuring providers. According to NBCU, the "test-and-learn" approach will deliver iSpot data from both the programming and advertising sides. A trial scheme for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games and Super Bowl LVI is planned.

The first media holding firm to test the new configuration across NBCUniversal's One Platform will be Publicis Media.

Advertisers and networks reacted angrily after Nielsen said it had undercounted both linear TV and streaming during 2020 and part of 2021. Nielsen's accreditation was revoked by the obscure but powerful Media Rating Council, and the measuring firm issued apologies, but argued that the margin of error had been as little as 2% in some circumstances. Any undercounting was a shock to the system for media corporations rapidly moving into streaming and seeking to stay competitive against constant disruptions from digital titans.

In recent years, iSpot's approaches have gained appeal in various sectors of the media industry. The startup has a wide range of smart TVs, allowing it to track viewing "off the glass" across cable, satellite, linear, over-the-air, and streaming services.

NBCU will receive real-time airing statistics for linear, streaming, and time-shifted viewing through iSpot. They'll also get next-day estimates for things like confirmed ad impressions, reach and frequency, linear and streaming overlap, and incrementality. Households, as well as individual viewers, will be measured for age and gender, as well as customized audience groupings.

As the year 2022 begins, the stakes for NBCU are enormous. In February, the Beijing Olympics and Super Bowl combine for a one-two punch that will produce hundreds of millions of dollars in ad revenue. As it approaches the 2022-23 upfront, the firm has been stressing new techniques of tracking viewership and interacting with advertisers.

“This is not a shift away from one panel-based system to another, but a definitive step toward embracing the metrics brands already use to evaluate media companies,” said Kelly Abcarian, Measurement Impact EVP at NBCU. “We have an obligation to deliver consumers a great experience, and an obligation to our customers and shareholders to utilize measurement systems that adequately capture the reach, attention, and outcomes we deliver.” The goal, she added, is to give advertisers “more data that accurately reflects our audiences, their consumption habits and campaign impact.