Foxtel Media CEO Mark Frain explains why the business will will no longer be measured by OzTAM from the end of this year.
Foxtel will no longer have its audience data measured by OzTAM to avoid being “plagued with the same instabilities in audience reporting, should we remain under the new VOZ measurement system”.
The streaming and satellite TV business will no longer provide audience data to VOZ for Total TV and VPM (video player measurement) from 31 December 2024. This is also when VOZ launches as the “official” media currency for linear and streamed TV audiences.
“Following consultation with the industry we have decided to move away from legacy measurements, that have been built and are owned by free to air networks, and partner with a progressive digital first analytics consultancy to provide our valued partners with the transparency that digital measurement affords. Foxtel linear TV will continue to be plagued with the same instabilities in audience reporting, should we remain under the new VOZ measurement system,” said Frain.
Back in March 2024, Frain shared his frustrations with OzTAM’s measurement system, explaining that around 40 per cent of Foxtel’s viewer data registers as zero.
During its annual Upfront event in October 2023, Foxtel Media announced its partnership with Kantar Media to deliver a new audience measurement service to capture viewing data from across Foxtel services.
At the time of the announcement, OzTAM hit back by saying that introducing an alternate currency “poses the risk of confusion in the market”.
“As we announced at last year’s Upfront on 26 October, we have engaged globally renowned market research firm Kantar Media to unlock the power of big data from over 1 million Foxtel set top boxes in Australia. This will provide richer, more accurate subscription TV data for clients who want a greater understanding of the audiences engaging with their brands,” Frain said.
“Now, more than 50 per cent of our revenue comes from premium digital video, this revenue comes with a responsibility to report back to our clients with the most accurate data we can provide.
“We understand that the free to air networks must continue to leverage existing services, as there is no alternative to a panel of audio listening devices to understand how many people are still watching television via an aerial connection. We are not being contrary for the sake of it, we are leveraging the data we have available to partner with a global business with experience of delivering a new and authenticated standard of reporting for premium digital video.
“We have been working hard to ensure we are in the best position to begin trading using Kantar as our official currency in 2025. A new measurement solution we have proudly stood up in just 12 months, with more to be announced at our Upfront in three weeks time. Watch this space,” he added.
