UK to combine print and website audience estimates

The online audience data will be that from Nielsen/UKOM, the recognised industry source. The fusion will be carried out by research specialist RSMB.

Mike Ironside, chief executive of the NRS, said: "This test is an intrinsic part of transforming the NRS into a full communication survey, not just one focused on readership. For the first time, the advertising industry will be provided, on a continuous basis, with a trading and planning application, giving a single-screen solution to combine coverage and frequency for both print and online audiences."

The most difficult aspect will be replication...

The fusion process will ensure that the NRS' readership estimates (collected by Ipsos MORI) are not affected in any way. In essence, each NRS respondent's readership claims will be unaltered but his or her record will have online audience estimates added, in such a way that each website's audience as recorded on the NRS database will be the same as on the Nielsen/UKOM source database.

The most difficult aspect of the fusion will be to replicate the appropriate audience duplication between the print and online platforms, brand by brand. There are a number of statistical ways of achieving this, and the test programme will assess each and determine which is the most effective. Results of the first stage of the test will be available by the end of October 2010. Results of the second and more complex stage of test are due in April 2011. NRS will then decide whether or not the fusion should become a permanent feature.

For more information go to www.nrs.co.uk.