MRC Blows Whistle On Nielsen Big Data

MRC Blows Whistle on Nielsen Big Data + Snafu by 

Joe Mandese , 

Yesterday Industry ratings watchdog the Media Rating Council (MR) this week disclosed major problems in Nielsen's Big Data + panel measurement service that have caused "seemingly unusual changes" in its audience estimates, including a double-digit decline in adults 25-54 viewing, as well as other issues. In a statement published on its website Tuesday the MRC said it became aware of the issues during the first half of 2025 from undisclosed sources, as well as part of its ongoing auditing of Nielsen's service and described the unusual changes as: Decreases in audiences for certain demographics, including an average 10% decline in total day impressions for persons 25-54 vs. the same period a year earlier. Issues with representation levels in Nielsen’s panel, including household viewing technology, as well as demographic characteristics. Changes in the general variability associated with reported audience estimates and between audience estimates originating from panel-only vs. Big Data + panel measurements. advertisement BISRetail-sp26-InsiderCircle-640x480dbl.gif advertisement In its statement, the MRC did not explain why it is disclosing the problems now, but it said that it informed Nielsen in September 2025 that it needed to do four things in order to maintain MRC accreditation for the service: Implementation of an independent media-related universe estimate source. Changes to Nielsen’s modeling processes to increase demographic assignment accuracy. Changes to Nielsen’s weighting process to help simplify the overall process and reduce standard error levels in reporting. Improving underrepresented demographic segments in Nielsen’s panel (e.g., Hispanic, Spanish-dominant). Regarding the first area, the MRC noted that Nielsen began implementing the Advertising Research Foundation's DASH (Universe Study of Device & Account Sharing) service, which the MRC previously accredited and which is increasingly becoming an industry default standard for media universe estimates. Regarding under-represented demographic segments, the MRC characterized Nielsen as making "notable progress in quarters three and four 2025 and into January 2026," and disclosed that Nielsen will make "adjustments" to its modeling and weighting processes beginning in April. The timing of those changes could be disruptive for the advertising marketplace heading into 2026-27 upfront negotiations, in which Nielsen still remains the default currency, though a number of alternative currencies are also being implemented by buyers and sellers. "We understand and we regret that these changes will be disruptive to business processes of the marketplace; we are encouraged that Nielsen is actively working to address the priority areas for improvement that have arisen in their Big Data + Panel measurement.," the MRC stated, adding that the Nielsen service remains accredited for now, but is "under evaluation at this time."

Paramount Hints At 'Iconic' Cable Brands Moving to Streaming

Paramount Hints At 'Iconic' Cable Brands Moving To Streaming Commentary Paramount Hints At 'Iconic' Cable Brands Moving To Streamingby Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, 6 hours ago Paramount Skydance has hinted at what will become of its linear TV networks' business, which will soon be growing via its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. “There are several iconic brands, both at Paramount and Warner Brothers, we can transition to streaming,” said David Ellison, chairman and CEO of Paramount Skydance, speaking with CNBC on Thursday. “So we see significant value there.” He did not provide many details. At the same time, he revealed there is some concern -- especially when looking at where the broadcast and cable business are currently. For many analysts, this includes those entertainment, non-sports cable TV networks. “You have to basically separate broadcast and cable. You know CBS is an incredible reach asset... an incredibly healthy business.” Ellison then went on to say that CBS has eight of the top ten shows on TV, along with the strongest viewership for an NFL season network in years. advertisement WBNR117-Tubi-001-640x480dbl.gif advertisement This comes as the NFL, a key programming content provider, will pursue higher rights fees from Paramount and all other NFL TV networks/streamer partners-- as much as 50% rise -- starting negotiations this year. In response to this from CNBC, Ellison said: “On specifics and the ongoing negotiation, I really can't comment on that. What I can tell you is we do plan to, you know, continue our relationship and I do believe we have planned accordingly there.” He went on to say that with the support of other healthier parts of the Paramount Skydance, the company can ease the decline of cable TV networks. “When you put all these portfolios together, we absolutely believe we can bend the decline basically of cable.... We can rationalize the cost and actually keep those brands healthier for longer.” Still, underneath it all, we know there will be some significant cutbacks to those networks -- staffing and otherwise. Currently, cable networks at Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery still sees benefit from TV distributors (cable, satellite, virtual) carriage fees. All this might be a heavy lift -- especially when negotiating a shifting mix of networks/streaming distribution deals with legacy TV distributors (Comcast, Charter, DirecTV, Dish and others). Can Paramount Skydance find the precise formula to keep the transition moving in the right direction?

Commentary The 3 A's of Marketing to The Gen Z Parent

 

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The 3 A's of Marketing to The Gen Z Parent

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• by Maria Bailey , Columnist, February 29, 2026

Gen Z parents are not shopping the way millennials did. They’re not starting with a brand website. They’re not relying on polished ads. And they’re definitely not trusting one sponsored Instagram post. Gen Z moms and dads are intentional and purposeful as they curate parenthood. They are discovering, validating, and deciding what to buy in entirely new ways.

If you want to win with Gen Z parents, you need to master the 3 A’s.

AI: Be Where Discovery Starts

Discovery no longer begins with a Google search bar. It begins inside AI tools. You may have seen this in your own online behavior.  When was the last time you clicked on a blue link?

Parents are asking: 

• What’s the best stroller for city living?
• Is this diaper brand worth the price?
• What baby wash is safest for sensitive skin?

And long language models are delivering answers from AI-driven environments like ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, and search engines that summarize the web instead of sending traffic to it.

For brands trying to reach Gen Z moms and dads, it’s imperative to show up in AI search. If your product is not mentioned in trusted content across blogs, Reddit threads, YouTube transcripts, reviews, and retail listings, AI will not surface it.

AI does not invent authority. It pulls from it. Brands have to be smarter in the content they create and the strategy behind their influencer or content creator partnerships.

Brands must:

• Create content that answers real parenting questions
• Ensure product details are consistent across retail, blogs, and social whether you create it or someone posts about your products
• Show up in long-form, searchable formats not just short social posts, this means mom blogs count more than followers on a single Instagram post.

Discovery is now conversational. Your content needs to be, too.

Authenticity: Trust Is Built on Reddit, Not Ads

Gen Z parents are skeptical by default. They question brand claims. They know everything can be altered with technology.

When they want truth, they go to community. Platforms like Reddit have become modern word-of-mouth engines. A mom will search:

• “Is Brand X actually worth it?”
• “Has anyone tried this for eczema?”

She wants lived experience. Not marketing copy or perfectly curated sponsored monotone images on Instagram.

Reddit works because:

• Conversations feel unfiltered
• Real parents share long-form feedback
• Pros and cons are discussed openly

For brands, this changes the strategy. You cannot control Reddit. But you can influence what shows up there by encouraging real, authentic reviews, listening to comments online and create communities around your brand.

Authenticity isn’t a message. It’s proof that Gen Z parents demand proof before purchase.

Algorithms: Visibility Is Earned, Not Assumed

Even great content doesn’t matter if algorithms don’t serve it up to viewers. It’s important to know the ecosystem of each popular social platform even in its simplest form.

• TikTok prioritizes watch time and engagement
• Instagram rewards engagement- saves, shares, and consistency
• YouTube values retention and searchable titles
• Amazon ranks based on conversion rate, reviews, and sales history

What Brands Need to Do to Capture the Gen Z Parent’s Attention

The good news is that brands don’t need to throw out the baby with the bathwater and start over with Gen Z parents.  Instead, brands need to be more strategic with the tactics many are currently doing.

• Search-optimized titles and descriptions in Influencer content
• Add FAQs to enrich product pages
• Ensure consistency across all channels including paid content
• Make sure Influencer content is indexed for AI

Brands that understand the 3 A’s stop thinking in campaigns and start thinking in systems. Gen Z parents grew up with systems, and they win for today’s moms and dads.

 A quick update for ad spending going forward as February 28, 2025: Philip Jay LeNoble, Ph.D.

'26 Ad Market Begins on A Decelerating Note: January +0.7%

• by Joe Mandese , February 28, 2026

The U.S. ad economy entered 2026 on a tepid note, expanding less than a point over January 2025, according to Guideline's just-refreshed U.S. Ad Market Tracker.

January marks the second month of deceleration for the U.S. ad economy, which ended 2025 up 1.9% -- the worst monthly expansion in 2025 except for two year-over-year Olympic comps in July and August.

 A little of something to think about now that Paramount begins its ownership of Warner Brothers Discovery: Philip Jay LeNoble, Ph.D.

Commentary

Netflix's WBD View: Nice to Have, But Not Necessary

• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, 8 hours ago

Early in the week when news broke that Paramount Skydance would be upping its bid for Warner Bros., Netflix stock responded in a way that some would consider surprising.

Shares for the leading premium streaming company rose around 10%.

The belief was that this was good news, as Netflix would not be encumbered with legacy issues that appear to be still plaguing old-school, big media companies.

Netflix did its best to financially hone its bid for Warner Bros Discovery to just studios and streaming -- and well as being financially disciplined in the bidding process when it came to debt needed.

What remains? For years, Netflix counted on legacy movie and TV studios when it came to their original content production needs -- including NBCUniversal, Warner Bros, Paramount or Sony Pictures. But more recently in building its in-house production infrastructure operations, they are less dependent on these partnerships.

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Legacy movie and TV studios deal with Netflix when it comes to specific production services -- perhaps on a ‘frenemy” basis -- because that is still a moneymaking business.

Overall, Netflix is now 80% to 90% independent when it comes to producing and releasing original content. What remains is that it is 30%-40% dependent on production services from legacy studios.

The Paramount-Warner Bros Discovery merger may change the dynamic somewhat from a competitive position.

But for the newly merged Paramount-WBD company, major disruption is coming for the next few years.

The newly merged company will need to make massive layoffs across all levels of the company -- studios/streaming and its cable networks.

In addition, Paramount-WBD favor going forward will have taken on enormous debt -- over $60 billion, and possibly as high as $87 billion to $90 billion.

This is the same financial situation that WBD has been dealing with since it formed the company in a 2022 merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery Inc. -- now at around $30 billion to $37 billion.

In the interim, Netflix's strong marketplace position keeps growing, while trimming back on library product deals from studios. Some estimates are that Netflix could hit 90% exclusive content by the year of 2026, currently around 60%.

What about strength in streaming combinations? For sure, Paramount-WBD and their big streaming brands Paramount+ and HBO Max would be a force to reckon with.

But if you take a look at combined market share of viewing from Nielsen’s January 2026 Gauge for streaming, Netflix still is tops with a 8.8% share. A combined Paramount/WBD market share for all its streaming is 4.7% -- around half that of Netflix.

Paramount-WBD will need to deal with this as well as still highly dependent -- 70% of its cash flow -- from declining linear TV network businesses. Even then some regulatory issues might remain.

Overall from a marketplace perspective, this isn’t all that bad news from Netflix. From Netflix’s continuing perspective from the start is that WBD would have been “nice to have” but not “necessary to have.”

And that is why its stock has been up 20% over the week through mid-day Friday, on the news it might drop out of its WBD merger pursuit.

A different surprise ending to this dramatic, highly public -- and costly -- script.

 Ever since electric vehicles hit the market, the future of this industry has been full of commentaries and, in this article the authors left out more of the consumer optional burgeoning preference of the Hybrid market. In my opinion, I can't wait 'till the countries around the world move away from fossil fuel transportation as climate change may be linked to ongoing fossil fuel environmental tragedies such as the severity of weather and disastrous fires! Philip Jay LeNoble, Ph.D.

Commentary

EV Owners Report Being Happier Than Ever

• by Tanya Gazdik , Staff Writer, 60 minutes ago

Despite volatility in electric vehicle sales, current owners report a new high in satisfaction.

That’s according to the JD Power 2026 U.S. Electric Vehicle Experience (EVX) Ownership Study.

Overall satisfaction among current battery electric vehicle (BEV) owners is at its highest level since the study’s inception in 2021. Notably, nearly all owners of new BEVs (96%) say they would consider purchasing or leasing another BEV for their next vehicle.

The Tesla Model 3 ranks the highest overall followed by the Tesla Model Y and BMW i4. The Ford Mustang Mach-E ranks highest among mass market brands followed by the Hyundai Ioniq 6 and Kia EV9.

EV market share declined sharply following the discontinuation of the federal tax credit program in September 2025.

“But that dip belies steadily growing customer satisfaction among owners of new EVs,” said Brent Gruber, executive director of the EV practice at JD Power in a release. ”What’s more, the vast majority of current EV owners say they will consider purchasing another EV for their next vehicle, regardless of whether they benefited from the now-expired federal tax credit.”

The availability of public charging is by far the most improved index factor in both premium and mass market BEV segments. Satisfaction among premium battery electric vehicle (BEV) owners is 652 (on a 1,000-point scale) and 511 among mass market owners, up 101 and 115 points, respectively, year over year. 

The continued growth of publicly available chargers and the opening of the Tesla Supercharger network to non-Tesla models have notably improved satisfaction among mass market BEV owners during the past several years. Furthermore, satisfaction among Tesla owners is rebounding as they adapt to the expanded access of the charging network.

BEVs continue to have higher satisfaction than plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). Overall satisfaction continues to be higher among BEV owners in both the premium (786) and mass market (727) segments versus comparable PHEV owners, particularly when it comes to satisfaction with the cost of ownership. 

Premium BEVs score 114 points higher than premium PHEVs in this area, while mass market BEVs outperform their PHEV counterparts by 117 points. Although PHEVs benefit from improved battery performance compared with traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, they still carry the maintenance requirements of an internal combustion engine—cost and service needs that BEVs are able to avoid entirely.

The U.S. Electric Vehicle Experience (EVX) Ownership Study, now in its sixth year, focuses on the crucial first year of ownership.The 2026 study includes 10 factors (in alphabetical order): accuracy of stated battery range; availability of public charging stations; battery range; cost of ownership; driving enjoyment; ease of charging at home; interior and exterior styling; safety and technology features; service experience; and vehicle quality and reliability.

The study is conducted in collaboration with PlugShare, the leading EV driver app maker and research firm. This study sets the standard for benchmarking satisfaction with the critical attributes that affect the total or overall EV ownership experience for both BEV and PHEV vehicles. 

Survey respondents for the 2026 study include 5,741 owners of 2025 and 2026 model-year BEVs and PHEVs. The study was fielded from August through December 2025.  

 Looking how best to market to the moms of Generation Z ?  Here's some marketing tips for local-direct businesses you may want to share with how best to market their business to busy moms: Philip Jay LeNoble, Ph.D.

  

Commentary

The 3 A's of Marketing to The Gen Z Parent

• by Maria Bailey , Columnist, 2 hours ago

Gen Z parents are not shopping the way millennials did. They’re not starting with a brand website. They’re not relying on polished ads. And they’re definitely not trusting one sponsored Instagram post. Gen Z moms and dads are intentional and purposeful as they curate parenthood. They are discovering, validating, and deciding what to buy in entirely new ways.

If you want to win with Gen Z parents, you need to master the 3 A’s.

AI: Be Where Discovery Starts

Discovery no longer begins with a Google search bar. It begins inside AI tools. You may have seen this in your own online behavior.  When was the last time you clicked on a blue link?

Parents are asking: 

• What’s the best stroller for city living?
• Is this diaper brand worth the price?
• What baby wash is safest for sensitive skin?

And long language models are delivering answers from AI-driven environments like ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, and search engines that summarize the web instead of sending traffic to it.

For brands trying to reach Gen Z moms and dads, it’s imperative to show up in AI search. If your product is not mentioned in trusted content across blogs, Reddit threads, YouTube transcripts, reviews, and retail listings, AI will not surface it.

AI does not invent authority. It pulls from it. Brands have to be smarter in the content they create and the strategy behind their influencer or content creator partnerships.

Brands must:

• Create content that answers real parenting questions
• Ensure product details are consistent across retail, blogs, and social whether you create it or someone posts about your products
• Show up in long-form, searchable formats not just short social posts, this means mom blogs count more than followers on a single Instagram post.

Discovery is now conversational. Your content needs to be, too.

Authenticity: Trust Is Built on Reddit, Not Ads

Gen Z parents are skeptical by default. They question brand claims. They know everything can be altered with technology.

When they want truth, they go to community. Platforms like Reddit have become modern word-of-mouth engines. A mom will search:

• “Is Brand X actually worth it?”
• “Has anyone tried this for eczema?”

She wants lived experience. Not marketing copy or perfectly curated sponsored monotone images on Instagram.

Reddit works because:

• Conversations feel unfiltered
• Real parents share long-form feedback
• Pros and cons are discussed openly

For brands, this changes the strategy. You cannot control Reddit. But you can influence what shows up there by encouraging real, authentic reviews, listening to comments online and create communities around your brand.

Authenticity isn’t a message. It’s proof that Gen Z parents demand proof before purchase.

Algorithms: Visibility Is Earned, Not Assumed

Even great content doesn’t matter if algorithms don’t serve it up to viewers. It’s important to know the ecosystem of each popular social platform even in its simplest form.

• TikTok prioritizes watch time and engagement
• Instagram rewards engagement- saves, shares, and consistency
• YouTube values retention and searchable titles
• Amazon ranks based on conversion rate, reviews, and sales history

What Brands Need to Do to Capture the Gen Z Parent’s Attention

The good news is that brands don’t need to throw out the baby with the bathwater and start over with Gen Z parents.  Instead, brands need to be more strategic with the tactics many are currently doing.

• Search-optimized titles and descriptions in Influencer content
• Add FAQs to enrich product pages
• Ensure consistency across all channels including paid content
• Make sure Influencer content is indexed for AI

Brands that understand the 3 A’s stop thinking in campaigns and start thinking in systems. Gen Z parents grew up with systems, and they win for today’s moms and dads.