BARC, in an announcement on Thursday, said it would continue to review and augment the current standards of measuring and reporting of data.
The Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), amid a controversy surrounding its viewership data for TV news channels, has decided to suspend its weekly ratings of TV news channels for a period of three months.
BARC, in an announcement on Thursday, said it would continue to review and augment the current standards of measuring and reporting of data. “Will continue to release weekly audience estimates for the genre of news by state and language”, it said.
The News Broadcasters Association (NBA), reacting on the suspension, welcomed the decision as a step in the right direction.
NBA said in a press release that the body should use these twelve weeks to completely overhaul its systems and restore the credibility of the information it collects about what India watched.
On behalf of broadcasters, advertisers and advertising agencies, the BARC measures TV viewership.
BARC filed a complaint through Hansa Research Group alleging that certain television channels were rigging TRP numbers, after which Mumbai police revealed in a press conference about the alleged fake TRP scam.
Param Bir Singh, the Mumbai police commissioner, had said last week that Republic TV and two Marathi channels — Box Cinema and Fakt Marathi — manipulated TRP for better advertisement revenue. Republic TV had rubbished Singh’s claims.
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