Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., has waded into the heated discussion about Nielsen Media Research’s Local People Meter service. The senator raised a number of questions, including why the research company does not plan to deploy the passive Portable People Meter that BBM Canada brings to the planned data collection joint venture with Nielsen in Canada.



In a letter to Nielsen President and CEO Susan Whiting, Sen. Schumer asked questions about why BBM’s PPM is not a candidate for use in the United States and whether it, being passive, might make for more accurate measurement of viewing, including that done out of home, which Nielsen does not measure in this country.



Nielsen spokesman Jack Loftus said the PPM has been in use only in Quebec and for less than a year and is scheduled to be expanded to Montreal.



“We think it has potential,” said Mr. Loftus, whose company uses the same people meters it uses in the United States to measure viewing in Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary regional and national samples. “We don’t think [the PPM] is ready for prime time.”