BARC commissions Baseline survey along with the IRS!

The Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) in a communication sent out to the media has explained the new Broadcast Audience Measurement System (BAMS) that is intends to put into practice. Jointly set up by the advertising agencies, broadcasters and advertisers, the BAMS will be one of the largest television audience measurement system that will also take into account the manner in which TV is evolving & the dynamics thereof. The new system aims to be completely robust, transparent and representative of the entire broadcast value chain.

As a first step towards their effort, BARC has commissioned a Baseline Survey along with the IRS. This survey with an estimated sample size of approximately 2.40 lakhs across urban and rural area is without doubt the largest such baseline survey undertaken in the world. The results of this survey which are expected to be out in November would form the basis for the BARC panel.

With TV no longer restricted to viewing at home but also on the other devices like mobile, laptops and desktops, the dynamics of the industry has significantly changed. In such a scenario, measuring people watching TV in their home only is a faulty methodology which leaves out the TV on the go/ or people who view TV while mobile. The Audience Measurement Study will take into account the fact that TV broadcast has moved beyond just TV to multiple devices, and any study that wants to be future-ready needs to take these into account. A ‘national’ study also has to take into account all demographic, social, linguistic, economic and geographic variables into account. This means that simple ‘research’ will is not adequate. One needs technological and analytic solutions too. Hence, two different RFPs (Request for Proposal) have been made.

The Research RFP covers pure Research, including sampling, weighting, household identification and data collection etc. The Technology RFP covers the non-research aspect of this study, including the best hardware available, remote data collection, technology for analysis of data etc.

More than 25 companies – including global leaders in technology and research - have expressed interest in partnering with BARC and RFPs have been sent out to them. The deadline for submitting proposals is July 31. Once proposals are received, an Evaluation Panel will scrutinize all proposals in order to select the best in class research methodologies and technology. The group will look into all three parameters viz - technology of equipment across all broadcast mechanisms, capture & analysis of data; and dissemination of data to users

The Evaluation Panel will comprise senior experts from the industry representing all stakeholders – advertisers, agencies and broadcasters. Additionally, experts in the technology domain are being co-opted to give insights on the best technology available. Thus BARC is trying to ensure that people with relevant skills are all on board from across its stakeholders to assess the best methodologies available globally. This global competitive bidding process will ensure that India gets the best in class, cutting edge broadcast measurement system.

BARC will provide regular updates of the work in progress on BAMS.