Mediascope Mediascope

2022

The withdrawal of the British Kantar from the ownership; Mediascope has become a completely Russian company

In early October 2022, it became known about the withdrawal of the British group Kantar from the share capital of Mediascope. Thus, a single meter of the television and Internet audience in the Russian Federation has become a completely Russian company.

The share of the British company in Mediascope was 20%. In September 2022, Kantar transferred its Russian assets to Mediascope management. RBC clarifies that the transaction did not concern the asset ARMI Marketing.

The British group Kantar left the share capital of Mediascope

{{quote "The withdrawal of Kantar from the shareholders of JSC" Mediaskop "did not have a significant impact on the work of the company. Since 2016, when Kantar transferred 80% of its shares to VTsIOM-Media LLC, a significant part of the work has already been localized. We maintain all our obligations to customers and partners and continue to implement all our projects in full, Mediascope said. }} Kantar announced its intention to suspend its activities in Russia to Mediascope back in March 2022. These plans also covered research companies Kantar Russia and ARMI Marketing, which is controlled by the Millward Brown network.

Kantar Media provided consulting services regarding measurements of the Russian audience and helped technology. In particular, audience research technology using pipelmeters, which measure which channels and at what time residents of apartments and houses look, was developed thanks to Kantar.

In Russia, Mediascope JSC and its subsidiary Edfact JSC are operating under the Mediascope brand by October 2022. According to Mediascope's own data, the company participates in television measurements of more than 9 thousand households, taking into account summer cottages. The panel in cities with a population of more than 100 thousand people has more than 6.7 thousand households, and the panel in settlements with a size of less than 100 thousand people - about 2.3 thousand. The data collected from these measurements are extrapolated either to all residents of large cities or to the entire country. The ratings obtained determine the popularity of certain channels and programs, advertising is sold on their basis.^[1]

Yandex refused to install a single Mediascope audience counter on its sites

Yandex refused to install a single Mediascope audience counter recommended by Roskomnadzor on its sites and will independently transmit data to the meter. The company announced this on February 15, 2022.

By law, we have the ability to choose between a meter and direct transmission of information. We will not put meter meters on our resources. We plan to transmit a sufficient set of impersonal information about visiting our sites to the audience for analysis. Such a scheme allows you to maintain a balance between data protection, transparency of measuring the Internet audience, as well as compliance with legislative requirements, the press service of Yandex reports.

Yandex refused to install a single Mediascope audience counter on its sites

The list of resources whose audience is to be measured indicates 79 sites. Among them are the online cinema Kinopoisk owned by Yandex, the aggregator Yandex.Novosti, the Yandex.Zen and Yandex.Video services. Managing Director of Yandex Tigran Khudaverdyan is a member of the Commission for the Selection of an Authorized Organization for the Study of Audience Volume.

A Mediascope spokesman told RBC that cooperation with Internet resources to provide data will begin on March 1, 2022. The meter is at different stages of technical negotiations with many sites, but it will be possible to talk about the results only in the spring. The company said it is ready to work on any of the options provided for in the law, but installing the company's meter requires much less resources and time and is a priority.

Back in 2019, Yandex refused to cooperate with Mediascope and removed its meters from its sites. Then Yandex announced the importance of maintaining a balance "between providing additional quality guarantees to advertisers and protecting user data."^[2]

Mediascope elected as the single counter of the Internet audience

In early February 2022, Roskomnadzor chose Mediascope as the single counter of the Internet audience. As stated in the department, uniform measurements and the presence of an authorized organization are designed to ensure the openness, comparability and reliability of data obtained as a result of research on the audience size of TV channels, online publications and other online platforms.

Mediascope will measure only those Internet resources that Roskomnadzor has entered into a special register, the message says. The Commission recommended that 79 information resources be included in the list (by February 2022), the volume of the audience of which needs to be investigated. Among them are 27 audiovisual services, four news aggregators, eight social networks, 26 registered media and 14 other information resources. The list is incomplete and can be supplemented.

Mediascope elected as the single counter of the Internet audience

The market has a system of interaction with Mediascope, for many it is an understandable and open system, Sergei Piskarev, head of the Association of Communication Agencies of Russia, told Vedomosti.

This is an industry partner who listens to the industry and works on the briefings that it formulates, "he said.

According to him, given the fact that Mediascope measures audiences in various environments, in the future the market expects to receive already cross-platform data. At the same time, at the first stage, the question remains to be resolved in what form the data will be provided to the Internet audience: to what extent, in what format and how they will be verified, Piskarev added.

The head of the National Advertising Alliance (the company controls more than 95% of the TV advertising market) Alexei Tolstogan believes that the presence of a single meter will significantly bring Russia closer to a cross-platform transparent market.

Roskomnadzor began accepting applications to select a single counter in January 2022. Then Vedomosti sources called Mediascope the only contender.^[3][4]

2021: Purchase of outdoor audience data provider Admetrix

On November 17, 2021, it became known about the sale of Admetrix to the main media audience meter in Russia Mediascope. Financial and other parameters of the transaction are not disclosed. It is only known that the buyer acquired not the entire company, but a controlling stake, and Russ Outdoor acted as the seller. Read more here.

2017

Mediascope research prices have increased significantly 2.5 times

A single television meter Mediascope (formerly TNS Russia) has increased the cost of media research services by 2.5 times, Kommersant writes in May with reference to the president of Twiga advertising agency Alexander Ohanjanyan. According to him, this happened after the change of ownership - 80% of the company was bought by the structure of VTsIOM.

means that out of 80 advertising agencies, 60 can immediately close and hang a barn lock - they are unable to buy their research for this money, this is a living barrier for a small business," Oganjanian said.

Officially, the meter did not comment on the price increase. Other interlocutors of the publication reported various information about the cost of services this year - for some there was no sharp increase, while for some companies the price almost tripled. It is also reported that, probably, for small players, the price increase turned out to be less significant.

In the market, this is associated with a change in the owner of Mediascope. In order for the company to qualify for the title of a single television meter and win the competition, VTsIOM-Media had to buy out the company's share, taking a loan from VTB in the amount of 1.4 billion rubles for seven years.

2016

Mediascope elected as a single TV measurer

TNS Gallup Media CJSC (Mediascope brand) was unanimously elected by the authorized organization for the study of the viewership at a meeting of the television measurement commission held in December at the Ostankino television center, Roskomnadzor said.

In accordance with the rules for the selection of the organization, a commission was formed, headed by the head of Roskomnadzor Alexander Zharov. The commission included representatives of the department, as well as the heads of the largest television holdings and industry associations. On September 14, 2016, the first meeting was held, at which issues related to the conditions, timing of the selection, as well as the number of organizations were considered. 4 companies submitted documents to participate in the selection: TNS Gallup Media CJSC, FortLine LLC, Media Hills JSC, Romir Panel LLC.

According to the amendments to the legislation, from September 1, 2017 in Russia, only research companies authorized by Roskomnadzor will be able to measure the audience of TV channels, the share of foreign capital in which does not exceed 20%. The TV Measurement Commission ruled that only one, not several, television meters would operate in the country. Market participants had little doubt that Mediascope would become it (formerly TNS Russia).

In addition, it became known that at a meeting of the Mediascope board of directors, the contract with CEO Ruslan Tagiev was extended for three years, Vedomosti writes. He has been managing the Russian division of TNS for more than 20 years. The head of the company Ruslan Tagiyev was a minority shareholder of TNS Russia until 2013, when WPP Group bought his stake.

Renaming TNS Russia to Mediascope

The media measurement group TNS Russia will be renamed Mediascope due to changes in the company's ownership structure. This happened after ^[5] purchase of 80% of the TNS Russia stake by VTsIOM-Media, Adindex reports^[6].

According to the publication, the former owner - the British holding WPP - did not give permission to use the TNS brand after the sale. The meter can only add a powered by TNS signature. In this regard, VTsIOM-Media not only changed the name of the company, but also announced the purchase of a service from a single supplier for the development of a logo and corporate identity for 940 thousand rubles. The terms of reference indicate that the brand should be "modern, while possessing conservatism."

The name of the only research company that will deal with television measurements in Russia from 2017 will be announced on December 15. On October 19, the deadline for submitting applications from applicants for participation in the tender will end. However, the most suitable company for all requirements is the subsidiary of the All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion - VTsIOM-Media.

As a result, on January 11, 2017, Mediaskop JSC became the new name of the company. The logo and corporate identity have also changed.

The term of office of the new media measurer will be three years, but Roskomnadzor will have the right to terminate it ahead of schedule.

WPP agreed to sell TNS Russia to VTsIOM

Since August 2016, the owner of 80% of the company's shares is the Russian VTsIOM-Media LLC. WPP Holding retains a 20% stake in the companies, and its Kantar Media division continues to support ongoing research in terms of technology, research solutions and consulting.

The British Advertising Holding WPP and the All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion () VCIOM have reached an agreement in principle on the sale of TNS Russia. After the completion of the transaction, 80% of the Russian business of the television meter will go to the VTsIOM subsidiary - VTsIOM-Media. They write about this "" Sheets with reference to its own sources and the general director of VTsIOM-Media Alexei Malinin^[7]

According to him, the purchase of TNS Russia is dictated solely by business interests. However, in the case of WPP, the law requires it. At the beginning of the month, the president Russia Vladimir Putin signed a law introducing a 20% restriction on the share of ownership of foreign companies in television measuring companies operating in the Russian Federation.

Malinin also assured that after the purchase, VTsIOM will try to maintain the continuity of TNS measurements, which will be ensured through cooperation with WPP.

"TNS is not a very big, but profitable business. The company works in a strategically very important area of ​ ​ measurement, which has long been of interest to VTsIOM. Moreover, TNS studies the audience not only on-air TV, but also the Internet. The technological side of media development is becoming more and more significant, "the publication quotes Alexei Malinin.

Recall that the new television meter is authorized to appoint Roskomnadzor by January 1, 2017. To do this, a special commission has been created that will oversee the choice of a new company to measure the audience of Russian television.

Malinin noted that the joint company VTsIOM and TNS will also take part in the competition. In turn, the new organization that will deal with television measurements will be chosen based on compliance with the principles of globality and continuity of ongoing research, the unity of the methods used for collecting, processing, storing and disseminating information and data obtained as a result of research, ensuring the completeness, relevance and reliability of data, as well as compliance with the requirements established by the legislation of the Russian Federation for the processing of personal data.

In August 2016, it became known that VTsIOM-Media plans to attract a loan of 1.4 billion rubles for the purchase of TNS Russia, VTsIOM ^[8] Vedomosti^[9]. This follows from the tender for attracting a loan posted by the company on the public procurement website.

VTsIOM-Media plans to receive a loan for financing the acquisition, current activities and payment of license and service payments from VTB Bank. The company will have to start repaying the loan in 2018. What kind of acquisition is in question is not specified in the document.

The first reports of the sale of the company VTsIOM

In June 2016, it became known that the British holding WPP, after adopting a Russia law prohibiting foreigners from measuring TV ratings, will sell its subsidiary TNS Russia, according to the AdIndex portal^[10]Sources of the publication are called a possible buyer. stateVCIOM

It is also reported that so far representatives of the company have not made a final decision on who will sell it to. At the same time, the FAS did not receive any applications for the purchase of companies included in the British holding group as of June 21.

Earlier, State Duma deputies supported a document that obliges companies engaged in measuring television ratings to receive mandatory accreditation from the Roskomnadzor commission. According to him, foreign states, as well as companies and organizations, more than 20% owned by foreigners, cannot apply for it. Also, the state VTsIOM announced the creation of the VTsIOM MEDIA company to measure the audience of TV channels, which is designed to compete with the British TNS.

2015:500 employees

TNS is part of the international advertising and communication holding WPP Group and its research division KANTAR. In Russia, TNS implements a full cycle of work in the field of media measurements, advertising monitoring and marketing research. For 2015, the TNS Russia group consists of three companies with a total staff of about 500 employees.

2008: TNS is part of WPP

In 2008, the group became part of the advertising and communication holding WPP, namely, the Kantar division, which united 13 research and consulting companies.

2005: Channel One drops TNS services

Being, in fact, the only media measurer, TNS is regularly criticized by customers. And Channel One has refused the services of this company since 2005.

"If they scold, then we work," Ruslan Tagiyev, the head of the company, explained in an interview with Kommersant in 2013. - The measurements we take do not answer the question, relatively speaking, whether it was a good series or not. They talk about how many viewers chose this particular product at that moment in time, no more. "

2002: TNS takes over MDC Suomen Gallup along with Russian assets

In 2002, British holding Taylor Nelson Sofres acquired the business of MDC Suomen Gallup Oy, and Russian companies became part of an international group. They became representatives of the Taylor Nelson Sofres brand in the Russian research market. That same year, Taylor Nelson Sofres changed the brand name to abbreviated TNS and rebranded.

1997: Gallup AdFact launch

In 1997, on the basis of RosMediaMonitoring, another company of the group appeared - Gallup AdFact, which monitored advertising in the media.

1994: Finland's MDC Suomen Gallup, Grodsky and Taghiyev found Gallup Media

The history of the company dates back to 1994. It was then that Gallup Media was founded. The company was founded by Vladimir Grodsky and Ruslan Tagiyev with the participation of shareholders, the Finnish holding MDC Suomen Gallup Oy.

The first project of Gallup Media was the Marketing Index (study of consumer preferences), then a project was launched to study the audience of television, press, radio and in 2006 - the Internet.

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