Barb has issued an invitation to tender for the next stage of its audience measurement service, which aims to extend Barb’s integration of big data and panel data.
For many years, Barb’s strategy has been underpinned by the belief that audience measurement requires both panel and big data. As Dovetail Fusion, the strategy has delivered viewing figures for Broadcast Video on Demand (BVOD) since 2018.
Barb Panel Plus, which will later replace Dovetail Fusion, will integrate multiple data sources into a coherent set of audience-measurement standards.
As part of Barb’s strategic priorities this year, which include enhancing core services through increased investment, it aims to synthesise data available from suppliers with evolving data requirements from subscribers.
Dovetail Fusion currently combines panel data with census data from BVOD players. Barb Panel Plus additionally seeks to embrace return path data, such as connected TV and set-top boxes, as well as first-party server data.
Caroline Baxter, Chief Operating Officer at Barb said: “There are more data sources available than ever before, both from media owners and third parties. Datasets drawn from large samples of millions of devices are now seen as invaluable.
Adding census or server datasets to the Barb panel gives us a bigger data sample, and therefore more accurate measurement of audience volumes. Conversely, census or server datasets typically don’t include the important detail about demographics, co-viewing and cross-platform duplication which the panel does. Our subscribers increasingly want fusion across all these data sources.”
Barb is looking for proposals that support it in calibrating volumes of viewing using the more accurate figures from census data, while preserving demographic, co-viewing and cross-platform duplication information from the panel.
The Panel Plus contract is divided into two components which include Methodology – design of a fit-for-purpose data fusion methodology to bring together panel data with Return Path Data, first-party server data, and BVOD census data; and Data Processing and Delivery – development of software to process data according to the fusion methodology, to a schedule and on demand.
Those looking to submit a tender need to inform Barb by May 9, 2024. The deadline for proposal submissions is August 30 2024.
