Time Shift Viewing measurement and reporting is being introduced into the OzTAM ratings service from 27th Dec 2009

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

OzTAM adopts international best practice in television audience measurement (TAM) research and adheres to the Global Guidelines Television Audience Measurement, GGTAM.

  • OzTAM’s current service is a live in home television viewing ratings service
  • OzTAM is moving to a service where Live, As Live and Time Shift viewing will be measured and reported
  • The growth in the consumer use of PVRs is the key driver to this service enhancement. PVRs allow for ‘shifting’ the time of viewing using the pause functionality
  • OzTAM has been working in partnership with its research provider, AGB Nielsen Media Research, to deliver these service enhancements.


When will Time Shift Viewing (TSV) of television be measured and reported?

From 27 December 2009, OzTAM ratings service includes the measurement and reporting of As Live and Time Shift Viewing ie from week 1, 2010 of the ratings calendar which is the w/c 27th December 2009.

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What is Time Shift Viewing of television?

The viewing of television broadcast programming at a later time than the live (actual) broadcast time

  • the viewing of a recorded program at a later time
  • the pausing of a program as it is broadcast live and then continuing to watch it in playback mode

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What devices can capture TSV of television broadcast programming?

Any device connected to a television set that allows the consumer to record and playback television broadcasts, such as:

  • VCR  recording on to a tape and playing back
  • DVD-R recording on to  a disc and playing back
  • PVR recording on to a hard drive and playing back

Branded examples of PVRs include Foxtel IQ, Austar My Star and TiVo. As Live and Time Shift viewing can occur in both PVR and non-PVR homes, due to presence of non PVR recording and playback devices, such as VCRs and DVD-Rs.

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What do the definitions ‘Live’, ‘As Live’, ‘Time Shift’ and ‘Playback’ mean?

  • Live – viewing of television broadcast content as it is broadcast live (OzTAM’s current service)
  • As Live – viewing of recorded television broadcast content that occurs within the same research day but is actually viewed at a different time to the original, live broadcast time (a research day is 2am to 2am)
  • Time Shift – viewing of recorded television broadcast content up to seven days after the live broadcast time
  • Playback – As Live + Time Shift viewing

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What will be measured?

  • OzTAM Metropolitan Service: Live, As Live and Time Shift Viewing to all reported channels in all homes including STV homes, in the five metro markets
  • OzTAM National STV Service: Live, As Live and Time Shift Viewing to all reported channels in STV homes nationally
  • Only standard speed (normal) playback will be included in total viewing (e.g. no ‘trick mode’, fast forward)
  • Only viewing of playback content is measured and not the recording of that content.

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How will TSV be measured?

  • AGBNMR is deploying a ‘state of the art’ metering solution called UNITAM
  • UNITAM uses sophisticated content matching technologies to measure all viewing to all reported channels on all TV sets in panel homes
  • Content matching means matching the same programs, same station promotions and same advertisements

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Will it be possible to measure the percentage of commercials being ‘skipped’ during playback?

OzTAM will measure and report only standard speed (normal) playback  in total viewing (e.g. no ‘trick mode’, fast forward). OzTAM has always measured and reported minute by minute viewing.

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If a program is being recorded and another one watched, which one is being measured?

OzTAM will measure the actual viewing of recorded television content, not what is being recorded or what has been recorded. 

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Will the enhanced ratings service provide the number of people and their demographic characteristics who playback recorded television broadcast content?

Yes.

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How will subscribers to OzTAM data be able to analyse Time Shift Viewing?

The enhanced service will provide for analysis by all reported channels using the current demographics plus the variables of PVR and Non-PVR households; Viewing Session Type - Live, As Live, and Time Shift; and Time from Broadcast.

OzTAM is working with 13 independent Third Party Software Suppliers (TPSS) to ensure consistent calculations of the TSV data.

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What is ‘Overnight’ and what is ‘Consolidated’?

Overnight  = Live + As Live viewing; Consolidated  = Live + As Live + Time Shift viewing.

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When will the data be delivered?

Two datasets will be delivered each day:

  • MORNING: Overnights for previous day (Live + As Live)
  • AFTERNOON: Consolidated for same day last week (which includes Time Shift up to the last seven days)

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How will the data be delivered?

  • Elemental data files:
    • Overnight containing Live and As Live viewing sessions from the previous research day which will be released as per the current schedule
    • Consolidated containing Live, As Live and Time Shift viewing sessions within 7 days of the original broadcast which will be released later in the day (actual time TBC)
  • Quarter Hour data files:
    • Overnight containing the sum of Live and As Live ¼ hour audiences from the previous research day
    • Consolidated containing the sum of Live, As Live and Time Shift viewing audiences for each ¼ hour

Note: From the start of TSV in 2010 the ¼ hour file will change to a daily 2am to 2am format.

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When will the TSV data become available?

  • The first set of Overnights containing Live and As Live viewing sessions from the 27th December will be available on the 28th December 2009.
  • The first set of Consolidated containing Live, As Live and Time Shift viewing sessions within 7 days of 27th December will be available on the 4th January 2010.

Note: Refer to Data Availability Calendar for more information.

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What to take into consideration when interpreting ratings reports?

Figures for each day/program may be based on Overnight or Consolidated data

  • Clearly identify what Viewing Session Type is included when reporting
  • Check reports for correct sourcing of the viewing data included

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When/How will I be able to analyse viewing to broadcasts on a particular day (e.g. Sunday, 27th Dec 2009)?

On Monday, 28th Dec, Live + As Live viewing of broadcasts on Sunday 27th Dec, is available in the morning.

7 days later, on Monday, 4th Jan, viewing to broadcasts on Sunday 27th Dec, that were viewed in time shift during 28th Dec-3rd Jan, is now available within the Sunday, 27th Dec Consolidated data file.

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 For more information contact OzTAM on 02 9929 7210 | or info@oztam.com.au

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