VOZ officially launches with overnight datasets to become available today
The much-anticipated Total TV measurement system, Virtual OZ (VOZ), has officially launched with new overnight Total TV reports to be delivered from today.
OzTAM, which is co-owned by Nine, Seven and Ten, reconfirmed the plan for VOZ to become the trading currency in 2024. In the meantime, the current broadcast TV (TAM) and BVOD (VPM) data and reporting will continue into 2024.
[click to enlarge]: The gathering process of VOZ data
The datasets are said to reveal “true national, de-duplicated audience estimates with co-viewing and demographics”.
They will measure all TV sets in homes, whether they are internet-connected or not connected (approximately 39% of household TVs), and will also capture BVOD viewing on more than 16 million connected devices nationally.
TV network bosses have embraced the potential of new datasets. Seven West Media managing director and CEO, James Warburton, said: “For too long, the TV industry has focused on its smallest audience – overnight linear broadcast viewers – and failed to clearly highlight the fact that total TV is much more than overnight ratings.
“The rise and rise of BVOD is a game changer for the TV industry and the new VOZ data accurately reflects how many people are engaging with our industry.”
Nine’s chief sales officer, Michael Stephenson, said the launch of VOZ is “the most significant development we have ever seen in television”.
“We are one of the first countries in the world to launch a cross-platform measurement service and our product is more advanced than any other market in the world. Australia is leading the world and our entire industry should be very proud.”
Chief sales officer of Paramount ANZ (the owner of Ten), Rod Prosser, was excited about what the new measurement can reveal for networks skewing towards younger audiences like Ten.
“As the youngest network, we’ve been an early adopter of VOZ as our audiences are digital natives who consume content across multiple screens, devices and times that suit their lifestyle,” he said.
“We know our live stream and BVOD audiences on our digital platform, 10 Play, regularly increase our total viewers by more than 20% in our key programs so we’re thrilled to have the industry now see the true picture and value of these leaned-in audiences.”
[click to enlarge]
OzTAM CEO Doug Peiffer said: “We firmly believe that seeing the true picture of television performance requires a Total Television view, and VOZ reveals the Total TV picture, powering TV planning, buying and post analysis in our rapidly changing viewing landscape.
“We would like to acknowledge the collaborative approach and input from the Media Federation of Australia (MFA) over the past 18 months and also appreciate the enthusiasm from the Independent Media Agencies of Australia (IMAA), and the constructive dialogue we’ve held with media auditors.
“Third-party software suppliers (TPSS), who are building the analytical software to process OzTAM data, have made tremendous strides in building the tools needed to handle the latest iteration of VOZ.
“We also extend thanks to the broadcasters, to Regional TAM, and to Nielsen, who are constructing VOZ to OzTAM’s and the broadcasters’ specification.”
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Darcy Song was a reporter at Mumbrella, covering media owners, adtech and social platforms. She left in October 2023.
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