Nielsen acquires Gracenote
December 20, 2016
Audience measurement specialist Nielsen is buying media and entertainment metadata provider Gracenote from the Tribune Media Company for around $560 million (€539.5m).
Nielsen says the deal means it acquires the data and technology that underpins the programming guides and personalised user experience for major video, music, audio and sports content. The acquisition extends Nielsen’s footprint with major clients by including Gracenote’s global content database which spans across platforms including multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs), smart televisions, streaming music services, connected devices, media players and in-car infotainment systems.
Gracenote provides reference information for over 12 million movie and television listings and 200 million music tracks, and drives the interfaces of the major streaming digital media services, as well as the connected technology systems in over 75 million automobiles. The company is the industry standard for automatic content recognition (ACR) technology, powering the discovery and recommendation engines used by world’s largest television, music and automotive companies.
By bringing Gracenote’s capabilities into its measurement framework, Nielsen claims it will have the ability to provide clients with deeper analytics on consumer behaviour and offer an unprecedented view of audience engagement from discovery to consumption. “As part of the Nielsen Total Audience measurement framework, Gracenote’s intelligent metadata will help meet our clients’ needs in an addressable world where marketers target customers and optimise campaigns in real time. The inclusion of this data will also allow media companies to optimise their content for specific audiences,” said Gracenote.
In addition, Gracenote’s long-term client relationships across TV, audio, sports and auto will be further amplified through Nielsen’s global reach and position as the leader in audience measurement and intelligence. The transaction is expected to close during the first quarter of 2017.
“Gracenote’s metadata and content recognition technology fuels the interfaces of the major video, music and in-car infotainment systems that consumers engage with every day. This acquisition provides Nielsen with a significant asset in our mission of measuring and understanding consumer behaviour,” said Karthik Rao, President, Expanded Verticals at Nielsen.
“For the past decade, Gracenote has connected millions of people every day to the TV shows, sports, movies and music they love, making entertainment more accessible and discoverable,” said John Batter, Chief Executive Officer of Gracenote. “We are excited for the opportunity to take the next step with Nielsen and expand our global reach by continuing to deliver innovative, insights-based solutions to clients.”
The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2017. The transaction is expected to be financed through a combination of cash and debt.