CBS Touts Study Challenging Ratings ‘Myth’
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The CBS television network released a study on Monday challenging the widely held notion that viewers aged 18 to 49 matter the most to advertisers, and therefore to TV ratings.
The recent survey of more than 1,000 top media buyers and planners concludes that viewers aged 25 to 54 — a demographic more favorable to CBS than 18 to 49 — is the audience of choice for the greatest number of advertisers.
The Viacom Inc.-owned network said the findings debunked the prevailing gospel, propounded chiefly by rival network NBC and often repeated in media coverage of the industry, that the 18-49 demographic is the Holy Grail of network TV ratings.
“The current singular focus on adults 18 to 49 in the coverage of the television advertising market is resulting in a distorted view of the economics of that market,” said David Poltrack, CBS executive vice president of research.
While CBS ranks as the most watched network overall, much has been made of NBC’s primacy in the annual ratings battle for viewers in the 18-49 “demo.”
Last season, CBS tied with ABC for third place in the 18-49 ratings derby, with Fox finishing a close second behind NBC. CBS, while much stronger in its 25-54 ratings, still finished No. 2 behind NBC in that demographic.
NBC dismissed the study, saying the nearly $3 billion it reaped from media buyers during this spring’s “upfront” ad market was a more accurate gauge of advertising interest than CBS research.
“The buying community spoke and loud and clear with their checkbooks in May and June. They gave us 3 billion reasons to believe what matters most to them is adults 18-to-49,” NBC spokeswoman Rebecca Marks said.
Poltrack said NBC, owned by General Electric Co., did better in upfront sales in part because of its higher 25-54 ratings. CBS earned $2.2 billion in upfront sales.
It remains to be seen to what extent the findings will alter the marketing practices of the major networks, the way they report their ratings or how the news media covers them.
For its part, CBS said it would continue to emphasize its dominant standing among total viewers and its strategy of targeting a broad-based audience.
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