INTRODUCING VIRTUAL AUSTRALIA (VOZ): AUSTRALIA’S FIRST ALL-SCREEN INTEGRATED TOTAL TV DATABASE

Will provide total linear and online television (‘Total TV’) viewing with demographic detail, de-duplicated across devices

Can integrate other datasets to support advanced audience targeting

Sydney, Australia, Monday, 30 July 2018: Australia will have an integrated database that will combine broadcast viewing on TV sets and connected devices, and support advanced audience targeting, with the launch of OzTAM’s new service, Virtual Australia (‘VOZ’), in 2019.

Conceived and being developed in Australia by OzTAM in conjunction with Nielsen, VOZ will be securely stored in the cloud and progressively rolled out from the first quarter of 2019.

VOZ brings together OzTAM TV ratings and OzTAM VPM connected device viewing data to deliver an all-screen, de-duplicated picture of what Australians are watching, who is watching, and how they are watching (‘Total TV’).

VOZ will incorporate viewing on 7 million connected devices plus minute-by-minute actual viewing behaviour of more than 12,000 individuals, 24/7/365, in OzTAM TV panel homes.

VOZ will crystalise Australia’s Total TV picture:

·  Advertisers and media agencies will be able to create media plans encompassing TV inventory across all broadcast channels and devices, and manage cross-screen campaigns – including overall audience reach goals. They will also be able to overlay other datasets on top of VOZ to support advanced audience targeting.

·  TV networks can determine the incremental reach from viewing on connected devices, and optimise their inventory across all markets, platforms and devices.

·  The media industry gains an objective, independent, consistent and transparent metric by which to evaluate the performance of TV content across all screens and platforms.

OzTAM CEO Doug Peiffer said: “There are 1.8 TV sets but a total of 6.6 screens, on average, in Australian households, and people are using them to watch television throughout the day – inside and outside the home. Prime time is now any time and OzTAM is building VOZ to report Total TV viewing.

“We’re proud to be working with Nielsen on this world-leading development. The positive feedback we’re receiving from media agencies, advertisers and broadcasters as we present VOZ indicates we’re meeting a significant industry need,” Mr Peiffer said.

Nielsen’s Head of TV Audience Measurement, David Ellem, said this next stage in TV audience measurement is a significant one. “Nielsen is laser-focused on bringing to the Australian market the very best total audience measurement solutions available in the world. Delivering VOZ will enable this market to better understand audience targets across and between all devices, as well as provide the opportunity for advanced audience targeting for TV.” 

OzTAM and Nielsen have for the past 18 months been developing, building and testing the components needed to deliver VOZ, including increasing the number of households in OzTAM’s TV ratings panel by 50% in 2017, to make OzTAM TV ratings even more robust as Australia’s population grows and people spread their viewing across many more devices and channels.

Every day, OzTAM samples the actual viewing behaviour of more than 12,000 individuals, minute-by-minute, 24/7/365. Together, OzTAM and Regional TAM’s panels make Australia the world’s largest per capita people metered market. 

• Building out OzTAM’s Video Player Measurement (VPM) service, which provides minute-by-minute data on 7 million connected devices streaming participating broadcasters’ (currently ABC, Seven Network, Nine Network, Network Ten, SBS and Foxtel) TV content across all platforms and devices.
  
• Introducing demographics into OzTAM’s VPM Report – on track for delivery before the end of 2018.
• Installing streaming TV meters in approximately 1,300 TV panel homes, to provide valuable insights into cross-platform viewing by household members; enhance demographic modelling of device-based viewing on household connected devices, which is collected by OzTAM’s VPM service; de-duplicate and identify linked device use; and deliver greater perspective on how people use their TV sets for purposes other than watching live or playing back linear television within 28 days of original broadcast.
  
• Constructing the data handling, processing and production infrastructure to support VOZ.

OzTAM is briefing media agencies, advertisers and broadcasters on VOZ, listening to their feedback, and will communicate further developments to market as VOZ progressively rolls out from Q1 2019.

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About VOZ

A world-leading development by OzTAM and Nielsen, Virtual Australia (‘VOZ’) is an integrated database that brings viewing on TV sets and connected devices together, and supports advanced audience targeting.

VOZ combines:

• television ratings currency panel data from over 12,000 individuals in OzTAM’s in-home broadcast TV measurement (TAM) sample;
• streaming television meter data from more than 1,300 TAM panel homes;
• online TV content viewed on 7 million connected devices (OzTAM’s VPM service);
• population information from more than 50,000 establishment survey questionnaire responses per year for the TAM service; and,
• Australian Bureau of Statistics population data. 

VOZ delivers demographic profiles for the audience viewing participating broadcasters’ television content on connected devices using a combination of:

• panel-based measurement of household members’ viewing across devices;
• total device viewing information via VPM;
• the repertoire of programs watched on devices over time; and,
• insights derived from the audience profile to the corresponding broadcast program (i.e., OzTAM TV ratings).

The VOZ integrated database draws on all these information sources – ABS population and Establishment Survey data; TV ratings; information from streaming TV meters; and VPM data on connected device viewing – to create a model profile of Australian households and people.

This completely anonymous profile data will be valuable to anyone wanting to better target viewers and allow advertisers to buy on both demographics (age, sex) as well as interests and needs (e.g., pet owners, mortgage-holders, frequent travellers, health conscious). It will also allow the overlay of external (first, second and third party) data sources to further support advanced audience targeting.