NIELSEN RATINGS


Meaning of NIELSEN RATINGS in English

National ratings of the popularity of U.S. television shows.

Developed by A.C. Nielsen in 1950, the system now samples television viewing in about 5,000 homes. A meter attached to each television set records the channel being watched and sends the data to a computer centre; individual buttons record which person in each household is watching a given program. Separate surveys are done for many large media market areas. The ratings project each program's total audience; for example, a rating of 20 denotes that 20% of U.S. households tuned in to a particular program. Commercial television networks use the ratings to set advertising rates for each program as well as to determine which programs to continue and to cancel.

Britannica English dictionary.      Английский словарь Британика.