English Entertainment
Nielsen and Fox television stations renew local television ratings agreement
New York, NY – March 22, 2017 – Nielsen (NYSE: NLSN) has announced today that it has signed a long-term renewal agreement with FOX Television Stations (FTS) for audience measurement services. As part of the agreement, FTS licenses Nielsen’s Local Television ratings across all of the group’s 28 stations, in 17 designated market areas (DMA), including the Charlotte FOX O&O WJZY/WMYT, which was not in the previous agreement. FOX Station Sales, their national sales representative group, is also part of the renewal agreement.
By extending its relationship with Nielsen, FOX’s owned-and-operated stations and national sales representative group can demonstrate their advertising and market value to marketers by leveraging currency measurement that provide breadth and depth into local audiences. The agreement includes Nielsen’s announced plans to enrich its Local TV panels with data from its Portable People MeterTM technology and set-top-boxes, delivering significantly larger sample sizes and driving increased ratings fidelity. Out-of-home audience will also be included for the first time in local measurement.
The investments that Nielsen is making to Local TV are part of its overall strategy to deliver all-electronic measurement across all 210 DMA. This effort combines Nielsen’s gold-standard panels with the strength of big data sources to provide Local TV clients like FTS with stable and accurate data that help them better compete in the marketplace.
“FOX continues to be at the forefront of delivering valuable local content to its viewers,” said Jeff Wender, Managing Director for Nielsen Local Media. “This strategic agreement builds on the long-term relationship and mutual respect that exist between FOX Television Stations Group and Nielsen. We are excited to deliver an enhanced local measurement portfolio for more strategic decision making and increased ROI to advertisers.”
About Nielsen
Nielsen Holdings plc (NYSE: NLSN) is a global performance management company that provides a comprehensive understanding of what consumers watch and buy. Nielsen’s Watch segment provides media and advertising clients with Nielsen Total Audience measurement services for all devices on which content—video, audio and text—is consumed. The Buy segment offers consumer packaged goods manufacturers and retailers the industry’s only global view of retail performance measurement. By integrating information from its Watch and Buy segments and other data sources, Nielsen also provides its clients with analytics that help improve performance. Nielsen, an S&P 500 company, has operations in over 100 countries, covering more than 90% of the world’s population. For more information, visit www.nielsen.com.
About Fox Television Stations
FOX Television Stations is one of the nation’s largest owned-and-operated network broadcast groups, comprising 28 stations in 17 markets and covering over 37% of U.S. television homes. This includes seven duopolies in the top 10 markets: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, San Francisco, Washington, D.C. and Houston; as well as duopolies in Minneapolis, Phoenix, Orlando and Charlotte.
English Entertainment
ZEE5 UK partners Narrative Entertainment to add UK channels
Six FAST channels added as platform sharpens hybrid play in Britain
LONDON: ZEE5 UK struck a first-of-its-kind deal with Narrative Entertainment, bringing mainstream UK television channels onto an Indian streaming platform as it pushes to deepen its footprint in a crowded, mature market.
The partnership adds six of Narrative’s FAST channels to the service, including Great! Movies, Great! Romance, Great! Mystery and kids brands POP, Tiny Pop and POP UP, widening ZEE5 UK’s appeal across genres and age groups.
The move reflects a clear shift in strategy. ZEE5 UK is betting on a hybrid model that blends on-demand content with curated, always-on channels to drive discovery and increase time spent on the platform.
“This partnership represents a meaningful evolution in how we serve audiences in mature markets like the UK, where viewers are defined by habits, convenience and choice rather than geography or language alone,” said Parul Goel, territory head, Europe, Zee Entertainment. “By bringing trusted mainstream UK channels together with our premium originals, movies and kids’ content, we are building a more consumer-centric platform that simplifies viewing while increasing depth and relevance.”
Fateha Begum, commercial director, Narrative Entertainment, said the tie-up would fuel growth for both sides. “Our portfolio of quality programming, with such wide and enduring appeal, is a perfect complement to ZEE5 UK. This is a strong partnership that will support growth for both parties, and we share Zee Entertainment’s vision of an increasingly partnership-led future for the industry.”
ZEE5’s global library spans over 4,000 films and more than 500 originals, with over 130 new titles added annually. The addition of Narrative’s channels strengthens its kids offering and introduces genre-led linear experiences alongside its on-demand catalogue.
The deal also gives Narrative access to ZEE5 UK’s fast-growing user base, extending reach without diluting brand identity, while reinforcing ZEE5 UK’s network of more than 40 live channels.
As streaming wars intensify, ZEE5 UK is widening its playbook, blending content, convenience and partnerships in a bid to win screen time in one of the world’s toughest markets.
