MRC Revokes Nielsen PPM Accreditation in Four Markets

RADIO ONLINE | Monday, October 19, 2026 | 3:31pm CT

Media Rating Council (MRC)

The Media Rating Council (MRC) has revoked accreditation for Nielsen Audio's Portable People Meter (PPM) ratings services in four major radio markets and denied accreditation for an additional 18 markets, according to its third-quarter 2026 accreditation decisions.

The four markets losing accreditation are Baltimore, Jacksonville, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. The action represents a significant development for Nielsen Audio, whose audience estimates are widely used by broadcasters and advertising agencies to evaluate station performance and make media buying decisions.

The MRC also denied accreditation for 18 previously unaccredited PPM markets: Austin, Boston, Dallas, Hartford, Houston, Las Vegas, Memphis, Nashville, New York, Norfolk, Orlando, Providence, Raleigh, Sacramento, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington, DC, and West Palm Beach.

The decisions were included in the MRC's July-September 2026 accreditation update. The memorandum did not provide specific explanations for the revocations or denials.

The actions leave Nielsen's PPM service with accreditation in 24 markets, including Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Detroit, Phoenix, Minneapolis-St. Paul, San Diego and Tampa-St. Petersburg.

In a letter updated September 18, 2026, MRC Executive Director and CEO George W. Ivie confirmed the organization's continued accreditation of Nielsen Audio's PPM service in those markets.

The accreditation covers specified monthly audio audience estimates and Average Quarter Hour (AQH) measurements available through Nielsen's PPM Analysis Tool and TAPSCAN Web. It also includes certain audience estimates in monthly PPM Radio Market Reports for persons 6 and 12 .

The MRC letter states that accreditation indicates the reported statistics comply with the organization's Minimum Standards for Media Rating Research and Nielsen's documented measurement procedures.

Separately, the MRC reported that several Nielsen Audio Diary Service products remain on hiatus effective June 23, 2026. These include Continuous, Condensed and Standard Radio Market Reports, excluding Puerto Rico; Custom Survey Area Reports; and the TAPSCAN Web Application associated with the diary service.

Also on hiatus are Nielsen's County Coverage Service and Continuous and Condensed Radio Market Reports for Bryan-College Station, TX; Hudson Valley, NY; Killeen-Temple, TX; Odessa-Midland, TX; Portsmouth-Dover-Rochester, NH; Reno, NV; and Trenton, NJ.

The accreditation changes could prompt additional scrutiny from broadcasters and advertisers in affected markets, particularly where Nielsen's PPM estimates serve as a primary source of audience measurement and advertising valuation.

The MRC's decisions concern accreditation status and do not, by themselves, indicate that Nielsen has discontinued ratings measurement or reporting in the affected markets.