BARC India's panel size and sampling methodology endorsed by IIM-C

BARC India joined hands with the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta to curate a report on its TV panel sample sizes. The report presented to BARC India summarises the review, analysis, and recommendations for the sample design of its panel. On sample sizes in general, the report states that an ideal sample size depends on many factors and, therefore, ‘there is no unique nor ideal solution’. Instead, sample size should be based on aspects such as the sample design, cost of sampling, overall budget, population characteristics and other internal considerations BARC India needs to account for.

About sample allocation, the team was pleased with the observed mechanisms in place by BARC India toward ensuring that the sample is ‘truly representative of the population’.

Some of the observations made in the report by IIM-C on BARC India’s sample size include:

• Appreciation of the existing practice and no need for any significant departure from the current sample sizes
• Opportunity of gaining additional insights by 15% to 20% increase in sample size
• The choice of 55K sample size for the next round appears quite reasonable

The professors even commended BARC India on its way of clearly and concisely documenting information of sample design and its overall data collection procedures.

Saibal Chattopadhyay, Professor of Statistics at IIM Calcutta and the team leader, said, “Three months of brainstorming and interaction with BARC India officials have been a very rewarding and enlightening experience for us. The assignment gave us a golden opportunity to directly apply our theoretical knowledge in the domain of Statistics to a complex practical problem involving TRP measurements in a country like India with enormous diversity among TV viewers. We are thankful to BARC India’s management for entrusting us with the task and are highly appreciative of their officials who have spent their valuable time to help us carry out the task to our satisfaction. BARC India has a good sample design framework in place and we have reasons to believe that they will find our report very useful and insightful.

Derrick Gray, Chief of Measurement Science, BARC India, said, "It is definitely a great honor that IIM-C, the country’s premiere management education institute has validated and endorsed our panel size and sampling methodology. This report by IIM-C has boosted the confidence of the entire BARC India team who work round the clock to deliver accurate, credible and robust viewership data, day-on-day, week after week. In a highly dynamic and diverse market like ours, it is a constant challenge to map the viewership patterns of 836 million individuals. But recognition like this always only makes us proud of the systems and technology set up that we have, which are at par with global standards.”

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