Measurement Criteria
Any publisher-owned print or digital brand can apply to have their brand included in PAMCo. For digital brands this is the case even if there is no corresponding print brand, or the print brand does not have a readership estimate published.
Print brands
For print publications the key consideration is that display advertising is carried. Publications which are not normally covered are:
- Titles carrying only classified advertising, or not carrying advertising at all
- Trade, business or professional titles, or special-interest titles whose readers are unlikely to be properly represented in the sample
- Titles aimed primarily at children (aged 14 or under)
- Titles appearing less often than quarterly, or titles which appear irregularly
There is no minimum circulation requirement for print publications, but a publication must achieve a minimum sample before any data can be released.
Digital brands
Publisher owned websites that deliver primarily text/visual content, including short videos, as part of the published media sector can be reported by PAMCo. Sites primarily delivering other types of content, e.g. for listening/extended viewing, as well as store/retailer/membership websites could be part of the overall PAMCo dataset as non-publisher websites.
Since PAMCo digital estimates are provided by Ipsos iris, appropriate Ipsos iris tagging is highly recommended in order to achieve the best possible estimates, although it is not essential for inclusion in the PAMCo dataset.
Assuming a minimum monthly sample of 20 panellists is achieved, Ipsos iris reports digital audience estimates even if brands are not tagged, using weighted estimates derived from their panels. These estimates can be integrated within the PAMCo database. However appropriate tagging is highly desirable, as this will improve Ipsos iris’ estimate by ensuring all activity is credited.
Newsbrand content sections
- Arts & Entertainment
- Business
- Homepage
- Jobs/Careers
- Lifestyle
- Motors
- News
- Personal Finance
- Science & Technology
- Sport
- Travel
Newsbrand in-paper sections and supplements
Furthermore, in order to be measured on PAMCo, in-paper sections have to match the following criteria:
- They need be part of newsbrand weekend editions
- They need to have prominent and distinct heading, displayed on each page of the section*
- They need to be at least 2 pages long
- Their pagination needs to be part of the main paper (sections with their own pagination are regarded as pull out sections and do not qualify)
- They should appear every week
*In-paper sport sections can be measured even if their masthead is only prompted on one page, as they remain a very recognisable section for most readers and the content of the unbranded pages is clearly about sport.
