Nielsen Adding Online Views to TV Ratings

The Nielsen Company has announced that it will start monitoring online TV viewing. The company will begin installing Internet meters in 7500 households early next year, the first step toward including online viewing in its TV ratings system. The company plans to finish installing the monitors by August.

Initially, Nielsen plans to issue a separate Internet viewing report. Eventually, they'll integrate those numbers with the ones gleaned from TV meters. This will move the TV world closer to having accurate ratings, but it continues to be an elusive target. By the time Nielsen integrates Internet and TV viewing, mobile TV viewing can be expected to start a growth spurt that will make it an increasing important part of the mix.