Nielsen reported higher fourth quarter profits as revenue from its media measurement business increased 3.7%.
Net income rose to $60 million, or 59 cents a share, up from $10 million, or 10 cents a share, a year ago.
Revenue rose 2.5% to $894 million.
Measurement revenue increased 3.7% to $647 million. Nielsen noted it had a third consecutive quarter of growth in its local products.
Impact/content revenue decreased 0.4% to $247 million.
For 2022, Nielsen said it expects revenue to increase 3.5% to 4.5% and adjusted earnings per share to be between $1.18 and $1.91 a share.
Amid complaints about undercounting viewing during the recession, Nielsen is in the process of introducing Nielsen One, its new system designed to count traditional viewing and streaming in a consistent and comparable basis.
“We delivered strong results in 2021. We successfully sold Nielsen Global Connect, hit significant product milestones, and exceeded all of our original 2021 guidance metrics despite facing some unanticipated challenges,” said CEO David Kenny.
“We are strongly positioned within the media ecosystem, with growing relevance as audiences shift to streaming, and we are delivering value to clients across our three essential solutions. We made measurable progress toward becoming a digital-first company, and our strategy aligns with where growth in the industry is coming from. We are piloting the first iteration of Nielsen One, which we launched in January, with a representative group of clients across media buyers and sellers and feedback has been positive,” Kenny said. ■
