Nielsen Ratings :: essays research papers

FOX Marketing; The following information is pertinent to the vitality and success of the FOX 24 cable-programming national network. It is necessary to discuss the importance of the ratings and shares system to enable FOX to increase viewership in the local TV market of 247,780 (.235% of US). This market is highly competitive among the affiliates of the other major networks: ABC, CBS and NBC. The target demographics for FOX include an average age of 28 years with a $55,000 annual income. 56% of viewers are male while 43% are female, and of these only 37% have a college degree. Due to such specifics, it is imperative that keep a variety of shows that appeal to a wide range of young adults. The FOX Family Channel is more oriented towards children and families. The data compiled by the Nielsen Media Research is essential to TV programming across the United States and in Canada. It monitors television ratings and estimates audience sizes by providing the highest quality of accuracy, allowing the television marketplace to function effectively. This information provides programmers and commercial advertisers with the awareness of people’s viewing habits. Depending on air times and the popularity of certain shows, the station calculates the advertising fees that generate a majority of its revenue. All TV shows are ranked in order each week according to their ratings. Ratings are simply a tally of how many viewers watched a specific TV program and are surveyed nationwide every minute of every day. The "sweeps" are four months out of every year (November, February, May and July) when Nielsen measures every local TV market in detail in addition to the ongoing national surveys. The rating system involves mathematical statistics with a focus on percentages. For example, there are 100 million homes in the world with TV sets. A rating aims to answer the direct question, "What percentage of the television homes in the world is watching a particular telecast?" A rating of 15 means 15%, or 15 million homes, were watching. At certain slow times during the day and night it is difficult to get viewers. The total viewing audience, the homes who are actually watching their television sets, is called the HUT, or Homes Using Television. At 8 p.m., the daily peak for t elevision viewing, the HUT is approximately 70. That is, 70% of the television homes in the world are watching something.