TV's Currency Conversion

Since the birth of TiVo in 1997, set-top-box data has been discussed as a more accurate alternative to Nielsen data for buying commercial slots in linear TV. But advertisers remain comfortable with Nielsen's historical input as the core currency by which to plan their campaigns. Recent advances in the technology to collect and assess set-top-box data, increased demand by advertisers and media planners, as well as the promise of addressable TV advertising have brought set-top-box data to the forefront as a useful data currency that can increase TV's efficiency and accountability as a marketing medium. Forrester expects local advertisers to be the first to make use of set-top-box data to refine their targeting within designated market areas (DMAs) and pave a path for national advertisers to start using new data sources alongside Nielsen by 2012.