16 Mar Byron Allen’s Allen Media Group Sues Nielsen For Fraud In Ratings Of Comedy.TV, Weather Channel & Other Networks

By Jill Goldsmith

Byron Allen’s media companies — Weather Group, Entertainment Studios Networks (ESN) and CF Entertainment — have sued Nielsen, seeking billions of dollars in damages for alleged fraudulent misrepresentation and fraud by concealment.

The suit claims that the way Nielsen has historically measured television viewing for years — through its panel system of recruiting and tracking household viewers — was unreliable for Allen’s ESN networks given their limited distribution. It alleges the ratings agency knew the measurement was unreliable but concealed the fact to drum up business from Allen Media, which paid millions in fees.

Nielsen declined to comment on the suit.

“This lawsuit is about Nielsen’s outdated, unreliable and broken television ratings service, and the resulting harm suffered by media companies who rely on Nielsen to sell ad time,” the complaint explains.