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To take the guesswork out of determining if, when and where a video news release (VNR) aired, VNR producers and distributors are increasingly using electronic tracking systems. These hi-tech systems automatically monitor who's watching the growing number of VNRs being broadcast today on TV stations nationwide.
What began as a trend in 1991 when Nielsen Media Research introduced Sigma--the first electronic monitoring system for VNRs--has become a regular part of doing business for most VNR suppliers. "The bottom line is that the new technologies tell you what ran," said Daniel Johnson, president of DWJ Television, a Ridgewood, NJ-based VNR firm. Proving VNR airings via hi-tech means has become a competitive advantage for many VNR companies. In fact, Sigma's success resulted in the creation of a second electronic broadcast verification system called LumaTrak, which is being offered by Radio/TV Reports (RTV) in New York City. RTV's automated system uses a technology called VEIL (Video Encoded Invisible Light), which encodes a video with pulses of invisible light (see sidebars on next page for description of how each system works).
Today, it's not uncommon for VNR distributors to mention the electronic tracking system used to verify hits in press releases touting the success of their VNRs. Many distributors, like Medialink, and Modern TV with its TeleTrak Report, both based in New York City, are also going to great lengths to publicize their ability to encode and track VNRs. In this results-oriented environment, then, it's not surprising that clients are requesting that their VNRs, which cost between $5,000 and $20,000 to produce and distribute, be tracked electronically to ensure that no placement goes unnoticed.
Indeed, the shift away from human-eye tracking to electronic tracking means that VNR distributors can now automatically--and accurately--record VNR airings,...