Nielsen Launches Four-Screen Ad Deduplication, Its Methodology For YouTube

In what Nielsen calls “a landmark move that will allow media buyers to compare YouTube reach to linear TV,” it is expanding its cross-platform measurement of YouTube across computer, mobile and connected TV devices to more accurately compare audiences to linear TV, giving media buyers greater comparability than ever before.

Nielsen says its Four-Screen Ad Deduplication methodology “enables media buyers to more clearly understand and better compare YouTube reach inclusive of connected TV (CTV) to linear TV ad buys.”

First available in Nielsen Total Ad Ratings, Nielsen said its Four-Screen Ad Deduplication will be foundational to deduplicate audiences across devices, services and platforms in Nielsen ONE, the company’s forthcoming cross-media measurement platform designed to deliver comparable metrics across screens and various stages of the media lifecycle.

With this announcement, Nielsen adds CTV to existing computer, mobile and linear TV deduplication to its Total Ad Ratings product to help media buyers more accurately measure the fourth screen by delineating linear television and CTV inventory. This is noteworthy, Nielsen says, because YouTube accounts for over 50% of ad-supported streaming watch time on connected TVs among people aged 18+ in the U.S., according to Nielsen Streaming Platform Ratings.

“Nielsen Four-Screen Ad Deduplication for YouTube gives advertisers and agencies a comprehensive view of an entire campaign to better understand reach, manage frequency and verify the audiences of their media buys,” the company said.

Debbie Weinstein, vice president, global advertiser solutions, Google & YouTube, said: “In a converged world, customers need a complete picture of their ad spend across all screens. Nielsen enabling advertisers to compare YouTube’s reach across mobile, desktop and now CTV to TV is a tremendous step towards their vision for Nielsen One, and we look forward to their continued efforts to bring cross media measurement to the industry.”

Kim Gilberti, Nielsen senior vice president, product management, said: “Four-screen measurement is a critical step toward Nielsen ONE, as it provides the comparability necessary to produce a trusted, deduplicated number across platforms that enables clients to better understand reach, manage frequency and verify the audiences of their media buys. As consumer engagement across platforms continues to converge, digital measurement must provide continuous and comparable metrics across all channels.”