Kantar Media Adds Three to BARB Client Service Team

Kantar Media has expanded its BARB Client Service team with the appointment of Leo Weir, Claire Mitchell and Emma Holden. The firm says this expansion reflects the increasing breadth of the BARB (Broadcasters' Audience Research Board) audience measurement programme.

UK audience research body BARB awarded its Dovetail Fusion cross-screen measurement contract to Kantar Media in 2017. This hybrid measure combines panel and census data for TV viewing on the full range of devices, and was first announced in summer 2013. Richard Poustie, who was formerly Kantar Media's CEO UK & Ireland, recently transferred to the role of MD Audience Intelligence UK, devoting all his time to the BARB client account.

Weir joins as Director of Research and Client Service, with more than twenty years' media research experience gained both agency and client side at Channel 5, Mindshare, Accenture, and most recently, YouGov, where he served as Joint Head of Digital, Media and Technology Research. Mitchell joins as Research Manager, with a media and research background from broadcaster A+E networks and Mediametrie, the body responsible for the French Television Audience Measurement service (T.A.M.). The pair are now responsible for optimising the running of the core BARB household panel and ensuring long-term panel health.

Holden has re-joined the company as Service Development Director in the BARB Client Service team, where she is responsible for overseeing development and implementation of new services and techniques. These include Dovetail (four-screen viewing), FocalMeter (Kantar Media's router meter), i33 (a new, enhanced audio matching capability) and the firm's suite of watermarking capabilities. Earlier, Holden served as Client Director at Starcount Insights, and she worked for Sky's customer intelligence business, Sky IQ, before which, she spent more than three years at Kantar Media Audiences, where she latterly served as Global Commercial Director, Client Software.

Commenting on the appointments, Poustie said: 'Viewing behaviour is changing at an unprecedented rate and BARB's audience measurement programme is leading the way in ensuring an accurate view of TV and video consumption. We are expanding the BARB Client Service team to deal with the increasing complexity of the programme, bringing in senior talent to ensure we are continuing to drive innovation, whilst ensuring vigorous research thinking is focused on maintaining and improving the health of the core panel.'

Web site: www.kantarmedia.com .