Is ISEC stuck because broadcasters are worried about impact on TRPs?
The Indian Socio-Economic Classification (ISEC), a new household classification system for media measurement proposed by the Market Research Society of India (MRSI) in February, is yet to be implemented after four months. The ISEC was intended to replace the current New Consumer Classification System (NCCS) which has been used by rating and measurement bodies such as Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) since 2015.
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e4m has learnt that some broadcasters are apprehensive about the ISEC’s potential impact on their Television Rating Points (TRPs). The Indian Broadcasting Federation of India (IBDF) has not come forward to share its official views on the ISEC so far.
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“The General Entertainment Channels (GECs) feel their TRPs will drop once the ISEC replaces NCCS, which may have a cascading effect on their advertising revenues,” industry insiders told e4m. “Since most of the educated women in India are moving from TV to OTT services for high-quality content, GECs rating may impact if the households are classified based on education of women,” industry insiders say. “In the current NCCS data, women from all socio-economic backgrounds seem to be engaged with soap operas on Hindi GECs channels. However, ISEC may show a different trend by distinguishing the viewership patterns of educated women from those of less educated ones,” TV executives told e4m. MRSI did conduct some studies to understand the general consumption pattern under the ISEC. However, no studies have been done for the viewership so far. Only Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) can conduct such a research. It was initially believed that the IBDF will constitute a taskforce to examine the issue thoroughly. But there is no clarity about the taskforce or its report yet. “We are still evaluating the ISEC,” an IBDF member said. When contacted, R Madhavan, President of the IBDF, said he was travelling. The response of Kevin Vaz, the Coopted Director at the IBDF and CEO at TV18 Broadcast (General Entertainment Broadcasting), who is handling the ISEC issue at IBDF, is awaited. The story will be updated as and when the IBDF responds. Notably, the Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA) backed the ISEC in February itself by writing a letter to the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) asking the latter to do the needful for the implementation of ISEC. Now, the ball is in the IBDF’s court. Advertisers feel current classification (NCCS) has become extremely volatile and lacks discrimination which makes it difficult for marketers to understand the purchase behaviour or media behaviour of consumers. They believe that ISEC will help them understand the consumers better and also help in sharp targeting consumers/shoppers, and hence they will be more efficient in marketing spends. “Every stakeholder is viewing the ISEC from its own lens. It is a delicate situation. We are holding discussions and hopefully all of us will be on the same page soon,” an ISA member said. Replacement of NCCS by ISEC is set to disrupt how advertisers and broadcasters interpret consumer data, potentially reshaping strategies and targeting in the industry. ISEC and NCCS both classify consumers into five broad categories but differ in their methodology. NCCS uses the labels ABCDE, while ISEC uses terms like High Class, Upper-Middle Class, Middle Class, Lower-Middle Class, and Low Class. The key distinction lies in the criteria used for classification. NCCS relies on the education level of the "primary wage earner" and the presence of "consumer durables" in households. In contrast, ISEC considers the occupation of the "primary earner" and the educational attainment of both the "most educated male and female adults" in the household. “As per an MRSI’s study, when NCCS (which accounts for chief wage earner’s education and consumer durable) was used as determinants, over 60 percent of households got bucketed in just three categories ABC. In ISEC, the similar category level contributes to merely 15 percent of the households,” marketers told e4m. “The NCCS panel classified a staggering 83% of the urban population into just two categories, A and B. This means we have been targeting a vast segment of consumers without gaining clear insights into their spending habits," said an advertiser. Besides, ISEC panels were found quite stable with little change in cohorts over the years compared to NCCS ones, people privy to the matter claimed.
How will ISEC make a difference?
Tags : Tv Ratings Isec Marketing Research Broadcasters Advertising