Barb is hoping that the next iteration of its audience measurement system, Barb Panel Plus, will be operational by the start of 2027, having closed its invitation for proposal submissions (relating to data fusion methodology, data processing and delivery) at the end of August. The evolution, which builds on (and replaces) Dovetail Fusion by integrating big data and panel data, will use devices counted in the millions, according to Caroline Baxter, Chief Operating Officer at Barb, the company that provides the measurement standard for TV in the UK.
Launched in 2018, Dovetail Fusion combines panel data with census data from BVOD players. Barb Panel Plus has the potential to combine the panel, BVOD players, first party server data from media owners, return path data (RPD) from set-top boxes and connected TV device RPD.
Baxter (pictured above) says the selection of devices used will be determined during the RFP and prototype evaluation, but the expectation is that it will broadly reflect the balance of devices (e.g. Pay TV, free-to-air, Smart TV, other CTV, etc.) in the UK market. “We want the [device] coverage to be as wide as possible and we want to avoid bias. We are also aware that if you have too many different data inputs to fuse you could end up with a bland picture,” she explains.
Barb will not speculate on the types of device data, therefore, but acknowledges the candidates for such a role, like ACR (Automatic Content Recognition) from Smart TVs, or HbbTV feedback data, or viewing data from the likes of Sky or Virgin Media.
The idea behind Barb Panel Plus is that adding more datasets to the Barb panel (which this summer completed its expansion from 5,150 to 7,000 homes) will enable more accurate measurement of audience volumes combined with the demographics, co-viewing and cross-platform duplication that only the panel can determine.
Khaled El Serafy, Head of Data Science at Barb (pictured below), notes that connected TV or STB data will be used for linear TV viewing. VOD viewing data will be available from more sources than just the broadcasters, using the first-party media owner data (from servers).
He highlights the role VOD has played in audience fragmentation. “With VOD you can watch anything you like, anytime, so compared to linear TV there are so many more possibilities for which content is watched. It’s important to capture that.” Looking across all TV viewing, one of the hoped-for outcomes is that any unjustified zero ratings will be eliminated.
El Serafy emphasizes that the panel is at the heart of Barb Panel Plus (as the name suggests) and that, like Dovetail Fusion, the big data set and panel data are combined, not merely presented alongside each other. The fusion methodology is one of the key building blocks for Barb Panel Plus, and all possible approaches will be evaluated.
Returning to device sample size, El Serafy reiterates that “it is important that the devices are representative of the population and cover the variety of viewing behaviours out there.” He adds that there will be a focus on the quality of data and not just the quantity.
Barb measurement underpins the linear TV currency in the UK, so whilst there are no plans to change the currency, it will be influenced by the integration of these big data sources.
It has been a busy year for Barb. As you can read elsewhere, it is working on a multi-point innovation roadmap for CFlight. It has also expanded its Advanced Campaign Hub pre-campaign planning and analysis tool so it can be used to plan campaigns that include Freevee, discovery+, Prime Video ad tier and Netflix ad tier.
Top photo: Caroline Baxter, Chief Operating Officer at Barb. Bottom photo: Khaled El Serafy, Head of Data Science, Barb.
