Media Measurement

The Singapore TV Audience Measurement (SG-TAM) is the official source of television audience measurement in Singapore. It is an integrated TV audience measurement system that provides the viewership of TV content, such as Free-To-Air TV and Pay TV channels, shown across traditional and digital platforms (e.g. Smart TVs and mobile devices). SG-TAM aims to help media industry players keep pace with the trend of media convergence, growth of the digital broadcast sphere and evolving TV consumption habits in Singapore. GfK Asia Pte Ltd (GfK) is commissioned by IMDA to operate and manage SG-TAM.

SG-TAM measures 24/7 viewership consumption across free-to-air TV, Pay TV and digital platforms. This includes up to 200 FTA and Pay TV channels, as well as top OTT content on streaming apps and social media platforms. Data from live viewing, time-shifted viewing and Video-on-Demand are also captured. This valuable data can be further segmented for analysis by channels, programmes, genres, platforms, demographics, times of the day, and other variables.

Find out more about how SG-TAM works here.

A nationally representative panel of 1,200 households forms the core TV panel while 2,000 individuals (recruited as much as possible from the core 1,200 households) form the digital panel. The recruitment of the digital panel from the core TV panel ensures an integrated single-source approach.

No. All panel TV households are randomly selected based on the findings from the Establishment Survey. Panel controls are put in place to ensure that all households have an equal chance to be selected as a TV panel household and the TV panel households are always nationally representative.

The ES is conducted as part of the initial phase of panel recruitment. It is a door-to-door survey covering a representative sample of 3,000 Singapore households, where panel households (TV and digital panel) are drawn from. Eligible households are subsequently invited to participate on the SG-TAM panel.

The ES is conducted biannually to capture emerging viewership trends and changes in socio-demographic profile. This ensures that the panel remains current and reflective of viewership preferences, and provides a steady flow of eligible households to maintain the panel.

With access to audience consumption data across a full range of media platforms, industry players such as content makers, media owners, advertisers and media planners will be better equipped to make decisions about the content that works best across different platforms and multiple devices. Singaporeans too can look forward to higher quality shows that engage and entertain them, and where such content can best reach them.

All data collected will be in strict compliance with the Personal Data Protection Act 2012. Participation is strictly on a voluntary basis when a household is randomly selected. GfK, an established source of market data, works closely with IMDA on operating and managing SG-TAM and will never pass on this personal information to IMDA or any other parties. GfK will protect the confidentiality and integrity of information, including the personal particulars of the panel members. The data available to IMDA and the end users in the media industry will always be aggregated and can never be used to identify the television consumption of a specific household or individual.

Many developed markets are experimenting with the measurement of online video content and are beginning to add certain elements of such a measurement to traditional television ratings. The result is a hybrid TV audience measurement service that uses multiple panels for the various content platforms. In Singapore, SG-TAM will measure different media and integrate the data obtained to provide cross-platform information on the Singapore market. SG-TAM also considers Singapore’s unique and dynamic market, factoring in racial diversities, changing television consumption habits, high technological sophistication and device penetration rate.

Many other countries have a national TAM system, e.g. BARB in the UK and OzTAM in Australia. However, they are primarily led by industry stakeholders such as broadcasters, research and advertising agencies, rather than the government. Singapore is the first country to develop a single-source, multi-platform TAM system that is commissioned by the government.

Up to 200 Free-To-Air TV and Pay TV channels are reported in SG-TAM.

With the newly enhanced measurement features, SG-TAM will be able to measure user consumption at both platform and content levels on commonly used OTT and social media applications for both Smart TVs and mobile devices.

SG-TAM subscribers will be able to request additional channels to be measured. Please contact GfK at SG-TAMClientSupport@gfk.com for further information.

Please contact GfK at SG-TAMClientSupport@gfk.com for more information on subscription to SG-TAM data.