Nielsen to measure VOD usage from set top box data

Look out TiVo—here comes NORA! The Nielsen Company today announced the commercial launch of NORA Nielsen on Demand Reporting & Analytics, a new measurement service that aggregates and anonymously reports on VOD usage based on real time transactions collected at the set-top box level. 

Part of the Nielsen DigitalPlus service, this new web-based tool will also provide integrated data sets from other measurement services from across The Nielsen Company, including Nielsen EDI and Nielsen VideoScan.  The new NORA offering complements Nielsen’s existing panel-based National People Meter VOD Audience Measurement service.

At launch, Comcast, the nation’s leading provider of cable, entertainment and communications products and services, will be providing VOD data for the NORA service, covering 1/1/07 to the present.  Comcast will also begin using the NORA service immediately to analyze trends in VOD usage based on a number of factors, including programmer, program distributor, program category (e.g., if the program is available at no charge, is part of a premium service or is a title customers pay for individually) and the box-office revenue. Have an opinion on this article? Post your comment below.