Arbitron is telling ratings subscribers in the Kansas City area that they can rely on the ratings data from the Portable People Meter panel in the market.
That’s after the ratings company tracked down who the company believes is behind a website called www.listenlonger.com and sent a cease and desist letter.
In a client note, Arbitron EVP/Service Innovation & Chief Research Officer Gregg Lindner says the site “encouraged Kansas City radio listeners to support an unnamed local station, posted general information about ratings methodology and ratings data, and solicited information on PPM panelists.”
Arbitron assures subscribers that the website is not affiliated or endorsed by the ratings firm, which “has taken substantial steps to ensure the integrity of the Kansas City PPM paneland all Arbitron audience estimates for the market,” according to Linder. That includes sending a follow-up letter, and now some of the text on the site reads: “Don’t tell us if you have a PPM. Seriously.”
Arbitron explains that PPM households that disclose their participation either to the public “or any unauthorized party” are dropped from the PPM panel.
Additionally, the ratings firm monitors social media sites, interacts with panelists regularly, and has additional, confidential, processes in place to help identify panelists who may have disclosed their participation, according to the ratings firm. The company says it’s taken special measures to protect the integrity of the panelists included in its recently-released May ratings for the Kansas City market.
Arbitron will continue to monitor the PPM panel for that market, as well as the website, “and to take ongoing actions to protect the integrity of the data on which you rely,” Lindner assures subscribers.
