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English news channels that had boycotted BARC, return

BARC has not made any changes to its policies to bring these channels back.

Several English news channels that recently pulled out of the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) India system have returned and have re-started the watermarking process.

English news channels that had boycotted BARC, return

BARC India, in a media statement, says, “We can confirm that as of midnight we are again seeing Watermarking signals of some channels, which had made public statements of having switched off their Watermarking. Their viewership will be reported according to BARC policy. We continue to maintain our position with regard to measurement of channels. There has been no change on that account."

NBA wrote two letters to BARC (on May 15 and May 17) asking the team to desist from releasing data relating to Goswami's Republic TV. NBA's grouse: Republic TV was using multiple LCNs (Logical Channel Number) to boost its viewership numbers in its first week.

BARC went ahead nevertheless. The data released for Week 19 (May 6-12, 2017) placed Republic TV at the No. 1 position in the English news category with 2.11 million Impressions. Times Now, the leader, came second with 1.14 million Impressions.

NBA promptly sent a third missive on May 18, 2017, saying, "We find that despite our two letters you have gone ahead and released the inflated and corrupt data for Republic TV as of this morning. This has serious implications and has caused irreversible damage to India's existing English news TV channels."

The letter goes on, "Given your indifference to the serious situation at hand, we are left with no option but to advice some of our aggrieved members to opt out of the BARC's watermarking system with immediate effect until there is appropriate redressal of our grievence."

Following that, Times Now, India Today TV, NDTV 24x7 and few others in the category pulled out of BARC India's measurement system.

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