As Merger Closes, Rentrak & Comscore Push ‘New Model’ For Media Measurement

By Robert Andrews, originally posted on Beet.TV.

The merger of media measurement houses Comscore and Rentrak just completed, heralding what the pair say is a new era in consumer tracking for brands and publishers.

According to Comscore, the new entity can now see

• 260 million desktop screens
• 160 million mobile phone screens
• 95 million tablet screens
• 40 million television screens
• 120 million video-on-demand screens
• 40,000 movie theater screens

Brands are pushing for holistic media measurement to take account of multi-modal consumer viewing in the digital age. Whilst Comscore’s heritage is in online measurement, Rentrak majors in set-top box and movie measurement.

Rentrak CEO Bill Livek tells Beet.TV, in this video interview: “We’re creating nothing short of a new model for the dynamic, cross-platform consumer.

“Cross-platform measurement is just in its infancy. But … when you add all the over-the-top digital platforms, there are a lot more consumers watching great TV shows. That’s great for the brand owners – they can use time and device as targets like never before.”

In the merger statement, Livek says: “The media industry can no longer be measured with samples in the thousands of households or individuals. The solutions our customers need must be based on unifying and making actionable massive amounts of information they can use as both a currency and to better manage their businesses.”