Conyers, House Members Ask GAO to Probe PPM

RADIO ONLINE | , , | :am CT

House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) along with Darrell Issa (R-CA), Rick Boucher (D-CA) and House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Edolphus Towns (D-NY) are asking the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to launch a probe into Arbitron's electronic measurement service, PPM, and its "effect on advertising revenue streams for radio stations."

"The advertising revenues and viability of minority-owned radio stations depends on an accurate measurement of their audience ratings," said Conyers in a statement. "I believe it would best serve the public interest to conduct an independent review of the methodology and accuracy of this process."

"As always, Arbitron welcomes every opportunity to discuss the PPM technology, service and our sampling methodology," the company said in a statement. "We continue to have a dialogue with key members of Congress as well as other interested parties, and look forward to helping the radio industry as a whole remain competitive in the current media marketplace."