Nielsen faces tender to retain Audited Media Association web audit contract
The Audited Media Association of Australia has announced a tender for web measurement technology providers to provide services for its web audit service currently offered by Nielsen.
The AMAA offers audits of the publishers digital and print circulation numbers.
The move comes only weeks after rival body the Interactive Advertising Bureau, mainly representing Australia’s largest online publishers, extended audience measurement company Nielsen’s contract as the preferred provider of online audience measurement for the industry body without a tender.
Interested parties in the AMAA will be required to provide metrics including page impressions, unique browsers and unique devices. The AMAA hopes eventually to include audience measurement and viewable impressions in its online auditing service.
The announcement signifies a shift from the current web audit service, which was based on an exclusive partnership with Nielsen and use of their census based, Market Intelligence service. The service stopped offering a monthly unique browser number earlier this year.
“We have valued our working relationship and partnership over the last four years with Nielsen, however, since the launch of the web audit service in 2009 our members’ measurement needs have evolved. The AMAA has been keen to maintain a relationship with Nielsen and would welcome the opportunity to continue to work with Nielsen in some capacity under the new arrangement.” said AMAA CEO, Paul Dovas.
The move is likely to draw interest from rival measurement companies. In the wake of the IAB announcement last month rival company ComScore said it was ‘surprised and disappointed’ at the IAB’s extension of the Nielsen contract without a pitch.
As a result of the tender the AMAA will seek to partner for each of the metrics, which will be audited and reported through the AMAA’s eData Portal.
“The potential to deliver a reliable monthly unique device figure is looming as critical for smaller specialist and niche publishers, who no longer have access to a monthly unique browser or unique audience metric,” said Dovas.
Web measurement technology providers have until May 24 to submit proposals which will then be assessed by a review committee.
Nic Christensen
