Nielsen rating

American  

noun

1. an estimate of the total number of viewers for a particular television program, expressed as a percentage of the total number of viewers whose television sets are on at the time and based on a monitoring of the sets of a preselected sample of viewers.

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Etymology

Origin of Nielsen rating

First recorded in 1960–65; after the A.C. Nielsen Co., its originator

Example Sentences

The company doesn’t open its full data up to others, and its metrics for what counts as a “view” are very different from a box office receipt or Nielsen rating.

From The Verge • Sep. 8, 2021

But for him to launch a widely distributed television network in 80 million homes and get a Nielsen rating on it, I think would be very, very difficult.

From Salon • Sep. 14, 2020

And the 6.9 Nielsen rating topped every golf broadcast from the year other than the final round of the Masters.

From Golf Digest • Oct. 18, 2019

According to the Nielsen rating service, the network attracted an average nightly audience of around 34,000 last year, and about 24,000 throughout the entire day.

From Washington Post • Jan. 13, 2016

The Houston market drew a 0.0 Nielsen rating for Monday’s Astros-Angels game.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 11, 2014