SAG-AFTRA to License Nielsen Streaming Data

NEW YORK – May 2, 2024 – SAG-AFTRA, the American labor union that represents more than 160,000 professionals in the media and entertainment industries and Nielsen, a global leader in audience measurement, data and analytics, today announced that the union has selected Nielsen as its third-party provider of streaming content measurement.

Powered by Nielsen’s Streaming Content Ratings service, which provides audience insights for programs and episodes across streaming platforms, SAG-AFTRA will have an objective source of domestic viewership data for original streaming programming. This data, and the insights gleaned from it, will inform the union’s forecasting and enforcement efforts around the new terms of the streaming bonus provisions of the 2023 TV/Theatrical Contract. As an independent source of audience measurement insights, Nielsen’s data will complement first-party data from streaming platforms and serve as a consistent and comparable lens through which the performance of streaming titles across various distribution platforms can be analyzed.  

“The rapid evolution of the media landscape and audience behaviors over the past decade has not only affected how content is consumed and measured, but also greatly impacts the financial models on which the entertainment industry operates,” said Nielsen CEO Karthik Rao. “We are incredibly proud that SAG-AFTRA has chosen Nielsen as the source for objective and consistent audience measurement insights in the streaming space.”

“New business models require new tools, and that’s why we’ve enlisted Nielsen,” said SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director & Chief Negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland. “The information they provide will give us the means to cross-check the data streamers give us and ensure employers are fulfilling their contractual obligations to our members.” 

About Nielsen

Nielsen shapes the world’s media and content as a global leader in audience measurement, data and analytics. Through our understanding of people and their behaviors across all channels and platforms, we empower our clients with independent and actionable intelligence so they can connect and engage with their audiences—now and into the future. Nielsen operates around the world in more than 55 countries. Learn more at www.nielsen.com and connect with us on social media (Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram).

About SAG-AFTRA

SAG-AFTRA represents approximately 160,000 actors, announcers, broadcast journalists, dancers, DJs, news writers, news editors, program hosts, puppeteers, recording artists, singers, stunt performers, voiceover artists, influencers and other entertainment and media professionals. SAG-AFTRA members are the faces and voices that entertain and inform America and the world. A proud affiliate of the AFL-CIO, SAG-AFTRA has national offices in Los Angeles and New York and local offices nationwide representing members working together to secure the strongest protections for entertainment and media artists in the 21st century and beyond. Visit sagaftra.org online or find us on social (Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter).

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