Nielsen is in the process of installing electronic meters – called Local People Meters (LPM) – in the largest TV markets.  The roll-out of LPMs in Miami in Oct 2008 provides a good case study on how technology can make local TV ratings more accurate and representative of the local population than ever before.

Nielsen’s electronic People Meters measure what people really watch and do not rely on the memories of people filling out the paper diaries, as was the case in Miami before the transition to LPMs.  This is increasingly important in a TV world where people change the channel frequently and have access to DVRs and several hundred TV networks.

The Miami LPM sample does a better job of representing the market than the set meter/diary sample it replaced.

• The LPM sample has approximately 600 TV homes, which is 13% more households than in the previous sample. This means it does a better job of representing diverse communities in Miami, especially Spanish-speaking homes.

• There are 81% more people in the LPM sample than there were in the set meter/diary sample.

• There are almost 700 Hispanics in Nielsen’s Miami LPM sample, which is up 88% from the paper diary sample Nielsen used to use.  African-Americans in Nielsen’s LPM sample are up 83% more.

• Younger viewers are also represented more in Nielsen’s Miami LPM sample
  • There are +111% more people age 18-34
  • There are + 93% more people age 25-54

• Because Nielsen recruits sample families in-person in Miami, it has a better response rate than the previous sample. The LPM response rate is 45.4% compared to the 24.5% for the set meter sample.

There are a number of technological advantages to using LPMs rather than paper diaries.

• The People Meter technology used in Miami is the same technology that has been used since 1987 to measure National TV Ratings.

• Nielsen can now provide TV viewing measurement in Miami 365 days a year with Local People Meters. This means no more “sweeps” periods.

• LPM ratings are available soon after the viewing occurs, which enables programmers and advertisers to make immediate decisions. In contrast, paper diaries only provide ratings four times a year during sweeps months, and the ratings are not available until more than a month after the viewing occurs.

To learn more about Nielsen’s LPM sample in Miami, click here.

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Want to understand more about how Nielsen measures TV usage in the U.S.?

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Internet users who rank among the top fifth in terms of time spent online also watch more than 250 minutes of television each day, according to Nielsen. In comparison, people who don’t use the Internet at all watch just 220 minutes of TV per day.

The data comes from Nielsen’s new TV/Internet Convergence Panel, which measures both TV and Internet usage within individual U.S. households. The panel consists of nearly 3,000 people in more than 1,000 households. TV viewing and Internet usage data are collected by Nielsen’s electronic People Meters and NetSight meter software.

Internet and TV “multitasking” is also common among these heavy users, Nielsen found.

Almost one-third of home Internet use (31%) is accompanied by background TV viewing, while about 4% of TV viewing occurs when a consumer is also using the Internet, according to Nielsen.

Overall, more than 80% of people who watched TV and used the Internet in September used both simultaneously.

Teens were the most likely to use TV and Internet together, but adults ages 35 to 54 logged the most simultaneous Internet/TV usage minutes, according to Nielsen.

View the full press release.

Read coverage of Nielsen’s findings by Reuters, the New York Post, the San Jose Mercury News, Media Post, Promo magazine, and TechRadar.com.

Submit questions about Nielsen’s TV/Internet convergence research to Howard Shimmel, who oversees Nielsen’s Convergence Panel, by commenting below.