The industry may be leaving billions on the table by sticking with average quarter-hour ratings as its currency.
TV ratings have long been central to how we understand audience behavior. We need to know what people are watching, when they’re watching and how programs perform. For programmers and syndicators, this data is critical. Age/gender-based average quarter-hour (AQH) ratings also play a valuable role in pricing sponsorships, selling sports and packaging primetime or marquee tentpole events.
But for planning and selling base TV campaigns, scatter buys and local schedules, are AQH ratings still the right currency?
The answer is increasingly no.
Broadcasters and agencies have used age/gender ratings for decades, relying on well-tested formulas for reach and frequency. These have historically driven results, but the media landscape has shifted. Buyers are evolving. They’re leaning into alternative currencies, streaming platforms and impression-based planning because they offer better data, better targeting and better outcomes.
In a recent column, I highlighted a massive discrepancy between impression estimates from one of the industry’s measurement currencies and those from an ad intelligence firm. While their methodologies differ, the financial implications were staggering. For just one broadcaster, the difference translated to more than $500 million in unrealized value using modest CPMs. When extrapolated across all commercial broadcasters, the industry may be forfeiting more than $5 billion annually.
In an era where “flat is the new up,” that’s not a rounding error, it’s a missed opportunity of transformative proportions.
Beyond the opportunity for broadcasters to grow revenue, there are compelling reasons why impression-based planning and selling make sense not just for broadcasters, but for the entire ecosystem. We operate in a symbiotic marketplace where delivering audience and outcomes for our agency and advertiser partners is essential. Delivering better results for advertisers creates a more competitive, accountable TV ecosystem. If we fail to do that, their investment will simply go elsewhere.
Here’s why impression-based selling makes more sense, now and in the future:
- Precision in Ad Delivery: Impression-based models deliver the right message to the right audience at the right time. It’s what advertising is supposed to do.
- Alignment with the Marketplace: Digital-first platforms like YouTube, Hulu, Roku, Netflix and FAST channels all sell on impressions. Broadcasters can’t afford to play by outdated rules.
- Proof in Performance: These streaming platforms are consistently posting double-digit year-over-year ad revenue growth. That should tell us something.
- Data-Driven Outcomes: Advertisers need performance. Impression data allows for smarter planning, budget optimization and measurable impact.
- Adapts to Modern Viewing Behavior: AQH assumes people are watching consistently over 15-minute blocks, something increasingly rare in today’s on-demand, multi-screen world.
- Advanced Targeting Capabilities: With impression-based selling, advertisers know exactly when, where and to whom their ads were served. That increases relevance and value.
- Broad reach and Awareness: One of broadcast TV’s greatest strengths is its unmatched ability to deliver massive reach, which is an essential component for building brand awareness. This advantage is not lost in impression-based selling. In fact, advertisers can maintain broad reach with simple age and demographic targeting, all with the precision and accountability of impression-level delivery and reporting.
- Unlocks Undervalued Inventory: Tough-to-sell dayparts like early mornings and overnights become more viable when you’re selling impressions, not average audience size.
- Enables Dynamic Pricing: Not all viewers are equal. Intent signals create additional value. Viewers actively researching a luxury car may be worth 2–3x more to a tier 1 auto brand than a standard demo rating would indicate.
- Boosts Trust Through Transparency: Impressions can be independently verified and audited, improving accountability and reducing makegoods.
- Cuts Down on Makegoods and ADUs: Audience Deficiency Units (ADUs) are operationally burdensome. Impression selling greatly reduces the need for them. Anyone in local TV sales, planning or traffic can understand how great their world would be without ADUs.
- Supports Cross-Platform Measurement: Viewers consume content across OTA, CTV, apps and streaming devices. Impressions provide a unified metric for de-duplicated, optimized campaigns.
- Future-Proofs the Business: As more ad dollars shift to CPM-based, addressable platforms, broadcasters need to adopt the same language and structure—or risk being left behind.
Addressing The Pushback
Some in the industry worry that impression-based buying could lead to lower spending thanks to increased efficiency and targeting.
Let me offer a reality check: That shift is already happening. TV buyers are already moving budget to digital and social video, where they get better data, better ROI and clearer attribution. If we want to win back share, we need to compete on the same terms.
And here’s the good news: Better targeting doesn’t shrink the pie, it expands it. When advertisers see better results from their media spend, they reinvest. Impression-based selling can drive improved ROAS (return on ad spend), which in turn leads to increased investment in broadcast.
Shifting from AQH to impression-based selling is not just a tactical adjustment; it’s a strategic imperative. It positions broadcasters as modern, measurable and aligned with the direction the ad market is headed. More importantly, it shows advertisers that broadcast is ready for what’s next.
Let’s stop leaving billions of dollars on the table. Now is the time for broadcasters and advertisers to make the shift.
