The Nielsen Co. said Wednesday it will triple the size of its National People Meter television ratings sample by 2011.

Nielsen now takes viewing information from 12,000 U.S. households and 35,000 people to project national ratings. That sample will increase to 37,000 homes and 100,000 people.

Some of the increase comes from the expansion of Local People Meters to 56 markets, with viewers in those local samples being incorporated into the national panel.

With a larger sample, Nielsen said its ratings will be more precise and it will have more flexibility in measuring nontraditional television viewing. Advertisers, for example, are looking for more specific information about commercial viewing, and a larger sample will help ensure the stability and projectability of data about who is watching in one-minute intervals.

“Nielsen is committed to continuously improving the quality of its television measurement, and this expansion will be a major step forward in the accuracy and the flexibility of our national television panel,” said Sara Erichson, executive VP for client services at Nielsen North America. “With a panel of 100,000 people, we can more precisely pinpoint the viewing of all demographic groups and dig deeper into the audience levels for networks of all sizes.”

(Editor: Horowitz)