BARC India: The new number game has begun

Tables have turned. The big fishes now seem like fishes in a pond while small ones have transformed into sharks.

After nearly seven years, the soap opera of the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) India, a joint industry body, got a new twist when it has rolled out first set of data from a new rating system.

This can be marked as the beginning of a super innings for the television viewers in India. Under the new ratings, which came out on April 29 this year, the audience of Indian television industry, who happen to be the end consumers will probably reveal a better side of television viewing and consumption of content. BARC India, when it rolled out the first set of data, felt the way content was measured and monitored would change for better in the future.

Television Rating Points (TRPs) had long provided ammunition for television companies to be at each other’s neck. The same TRPs also became a bone of contention between Television Audience Measurement (TAM) and the Government of India. Till the time BARC came out with a new method of measuring TRPs, TAM – the agency, was the only avenue to understand the viewer trends and content ratings. TAM’s reports were much coveted, and advertisers would pay hefty sums to get the reports regularly, to book their slots on most popular channels and shows.

In more than one ways, TRPs were small little numbers that ran the industry as 34% of the revenue generated in television industry is through advertising. The standoff between the government and TAM paved way for swifter action by BARC and the new ratings became need of the hour.

There was an apprehension that the standoff may actually cost huge revenues since the matter became sub judice, with TAM possibly not functioning before BARC actually came about. This was when India was about to witness general elections last year. Though this caused a bit of heartburn, all was well covered through the phase and BARC’s new rating system came into existence after nearly 11 months into the new government.

After releasing the new set of data, BARC India has actually changed the rules of the game. Players who till now assumed they were the leaders, turned into mere members of the team; while those who were members, bagged top spots. This has surely had economic repercussions too, in the way games are being designed and players are selected now. The ecosystem has turned completely transparent and that is what is providing the entire transaction a renewed trusted way of engaging in the business of television and advertising.

BARC India has often said it is committed to building a world class television audience measuring system that is scientific and has scope to
further analyse than having ranks associated with shows or soaps. Though the initial reactions have been enthusiastic and welcoming, there is also an air of skepticism that has been about ‘wait and watch’. This means, some of the players in the industry would rather wait for a set of data to be open to analysis, at the level of individual data, which gives them the space to interpret and make further business plans.

Industry experts point out media planning can never be done on household data alone. Though the new rating system is based on a scientific model that’s recognized under research methodology, such as stratified random sampling technique which has proved its applicability in the area; it would be feasible to assume there is still scope for improvement on this model too. Because, like some of the industry leaders feel, it does not cover all the market segments that are vital for the television industry to survive or stay the front runner.

The first week of BARC numbers, industry experts add, were more or less in line with what they had predicted and expected. As far as the ‘upsets’ are concerned, the channels or shows which moved down the ranking scale, very few have actually caused some furore in their respective fields or channel officers. Pecking order has remained the same, they say. But then, the dumping order has surely changed!