NBC to release show-specific streaming data

How many people are watching "30 Rock" on NBC's website? The TV network is going to start telling us.

Trying to make advertisers more comfortable buying spots on online shows, NBC Digital Entertainment said today it would begin to release show-specific streaming data for the first time through the Nielsen Online VideoCensus. The network says this new type of measurement makes it possible for advertisers to compare audience numbers, show by show.

"Show-level data is something that advertisers have been asking for, and NBC Universal is confident the numbers we're releasing through Nielsen Online's VideoCensus are both accurate and illustrative of the dramatic engagement that content from NBC Digital Entertainment delivers," Peter Naylor, senior vice president of digital media sales, said in a statement.

The bottom line? Three little words: Spend more money.

"Online video advertising is still pretty nascent," broadband video analyst Will Richmond said. "But there's a lot of excitement about its potential.... This feels like a step in the right direction, in terms of providing better targeting information, which can only serve to help advertisers get more comfortable with this new medium."

-- Dawn C. Chmielewski

Chmielewski, a Times staff writer, covers Disney, News Corp. and digital media.

Photo by Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times