Cell-Phone-Only Household Sample Hits Target of 10 percent; Yields 25 percent increase in Persons aged 18-34 Sample Metric
Sample Quality Metric is over 80 in 100 percent of 4-Book Markets with Cell-Phone-Only sampling; nearly 90 percent of Other Diary Markets with Cell-Phone-Only Sampling
COLUMBIA, Md., Aug. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Arbitron Inc. (NYSE: ARB) today announced that the samples for its Spring 2009 Diary Local Market Report met or exceeded several key quality metrics that the company established as part of its continuous improvement program. The enhancements implemented through the Spring 2009 Diary survey included improved cell-phone-only (CPO) sampling and increased Diary sample benchmarks for Persons 18-54 and 18-34.
"Arbitron remains strongly committed to the Diary markets we serve and to our program of continuous improvement for our Diary service," Skarzynski continued. "We are delivering solid increases above previous surveys and are raising the bar at the completion of each new improvement."
Cell-phone-only Sample Delivered
Arbitron achieved its target of delivering a sample containing at least 10 percent CPO households across 151 local markets in the Spring 2009 survey. By the Fall 2009 survey, Arbitron plans to include CPO households in all 288 Diary markets in the continental US, Hawaii, and Alaska.
EDITORS NOTE: Portable People Meter(TM) markets already include cell-phone-only households in the rating panels.
Diary market benchmarks
Starting with the Fall 2008 survey, Arbitron established an annual sample quality benchmark for Persons aged 18-54 in all Diary markets equal to a Designated Delivery Index (DDI) of 80. Beginning with the Spring 2009 survey, Arbitron established an annual sample quality benchmark for Persons aged 18-34 in all Diary markets equal to a DDI of 70. Beginning with the thirteenth month after implementation, the 18-34 DDI benchmark will be 80.
Arbitron uses sample quality benchmarks to gauge sample performance and to indicate the levels below which it would plan to implement measures designed to improve sample performance.
The overall sample for the Spring 2009 survey included an average DDI of 88 for Persons 18-54 across all markets, 8 points above the 80 DDI benchmark. The overall sample for the survey included an average DDI of 70 for Persons 18-34 across all markets, meeting the benchmark.
