Nielsen Music Extends Agreements With Christian Music Trade Association

(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — Nielsen Music, which operates both Broadcast Data Systems (Nielsen BDS) and Nielsen SoundScan, and the Christian Music Trade Association (CMTA) have entered into a long-term extension of their data and information services agreements, where Nielsen BDS & SoundScan will continue to monitor gospel retailers and radio stations to provide retail sales census data and radio airplay; Nielsen BDS monitors 46 Christian radio stations in North America while Nielsen SoundScan has 1,285 Christian retailers currently reporting to SoundScan.

"We're pleased that BDS and SoundScan has been selected to continue to monitor and report Christian radio music airplay and retail sales census data for the CMTA," said Rob Sisco, president Nielsen Music, and COO Nielsen Entertainment, East Coast Operations. "With new capabilities that we have recently added to BDS, we have expanded our reporting monitoring stations to be more comprehensive then ever before."

John W. Styll, president of the CMTA and the Gospel Music Association (GMA), noted: "Nielsen SoundScan has made enormous contributions to the growth of both our sales and status in the music industry since it was introduced in 1996. Christian retailers account for half of the sales of the many genres of gospel music and without the opportunity to count their sales through Nielsen SoundScan, the impact of those sales would not have been felt on the Billboard charts. Christian video has also made an impact on the Billboard charts, thanks to Nielsen SoundScan. In a similar manner, as we continue to expand Nielsen BDS monitoring at Christian radio, I think we'll look back a few years from now and see Nielsen BDS helping to expose a new generation of Christian music artists to the world by providing the record companies with more precise marketing information and by creating additional exposure for Christian radio airplay via inclusion of this data in the influential Billboard Hot 100 radio chart."

CMTA is affiliated with the 4,500-member GMA organization which was founded in 1964 and represents all styles of gospel music including contemporary pop, rock, urban gospel, praise & worship, southern gospel, country and children's gospel music. The GMA produces Gamma's Annual Music Awards, which recognizes achievement in all genres of gospel music.

— Jane Cohen and Bob Grossweiner