News notes

At press time in early February, The Guardian in London reported that United Business Media had emerged as the front-runner to buy NFO WorldGroup from The Interpublic Group, which Reuters said in January had hired investment bank Goldman Sachs to explore strategic alternatives for the research unit. Also interested are WPP, private equity fkrm Hellman and Friedman, advertising group Aegis, and market research firm TaylorNelson Sofres.

Netherlands-based media and informarion company VNU has announced it is exploring strategic options, including the possible sale, of two of its marketing information units in Europe, ACNielsen’s Customized Research services and Claritas Europe, with combined revenues of approximately EUR 130 million.

In doing so, VNU aims to refocus resources and management attention on activities closest to VNU’s mainstream marketing information businesses. "ACNielsen’s European Customized Research business and Claritas Europe are both well-established businesses with strong management and long-term client relation-ships, but they operate with little synergy with the rest of our marketing information business in the European marketplace," says Brian Chadbourne, president and CEO of VNU Marketing Information EMEA.

The evaluation of strategic options for ACNielsen’s customized research business is limited solely to Europe, where it operates currently in 10 countries, with little client overlap with ACNielsen’s other businesses. VNU’s customized research activities outside Europe remain a part of its core marketing information business and are unaffected by this process.VNU has retained Veronis, Suhler & Stevenson, Inc., as its advisor to look into the strategic options for ACNielsen’s European Customized Research businesses.

Claritas Europe has offices in eight countries and is run independently from Claritas, Inc., in the U.S. Claritas Europe has a broad customer base, however it lacks synergy with the other activities of VNU Marketing Information Europe. In the U.S., VNU’s Claritas, Inc., operations have a fundamentally different business model from their European namesake and VNU remains committed to its presence in that market.

Chicago-based C&R Research has announced it will now operate as two independent business units with separate management teams. The analytic and consulting group will continue to do business under the C&R Research name, with Robbin Jaklin assuming the position of president, JeffBerman, executive vice president, and Walt Dickie, executive vice president/chief technology officer. The company’s focus group facilities and phone center will continue to operate under the fieldwork name, with Steve Turner as president, Saul Ben-Zeev as vice president, quality control, Chris de Brauw as vice president, sales and marketing and Steve Raebel as CFO. Equity positions in the parent organization C&R Research Services, Inc., will be unaffected by the management realignment. C&R Research Services, Inc., grew from Creative Research, founded in 1960 by Saul Ben-Zeev. Fieldwork, Inc. was launched in 1980.

St. Louis-based Doane Marketing Research, Inc. has reorganized into two industry groups. The agronomic industries group will service crop protection, seed, and ag equipment clients and is headed by Roy Cleveland, group vice president, and includes Marypat Corbett as the senior account representative. The other is the consumer,commercial and health industries group, which is headed by Brian Hagan, group vice president, and includes Dave Tugend, vice president of marketing, as account representative. This group will service large animal and companion animal health and nutrition companies as well as non-agoriented
consumer, commercial, and health companies.

Davis Research, Calabasas, Calif., has announced an ownership transition from founders Carol and Bill Davis Sr. to their sons Bob and Bill Davis.

Alliances/strategic partnerships

London-based market intelligence firm Citigate DVL Smith announced that the Momentum Research Group (MRG), a U.S.-based research practice with a focus on business-to-business markets, has joined Citigate DVL Smith. With this move, Citigate DVL Smith expands its portfolio of research capabilities and gains a base for increasing its service of North American clients. IVIRG, previously adivision of Citigate Cunningham, will retain its brand name and identity.

New York-based WebSurveyResearch and Olitzky Whittle LLC, a pharmaceutical marketing research firm, will work together to deliver online surveys to assess marketing research information from physicians and other health care professionals. Under the terms of the letter of intent, Olitzky Whittle will have immediate access to WebSurveyResearch’s physician panel for performing marketing research. Olitzky Whittle LLC will perform the questionnaire design and analysis of data.

Association/organization news

Paul Talmey of Talmey-Drake Research & Strategy, Inc., is the new chair of the Council of American Survey Research Organizations (CASRO). Talmey is joined by Chair- Elect Simon Chadwick (CEO, NOP World), Treasurer Dale Letsch (president, Pert Survey Research), and Secretary Morris Davis (president, M. Davis and Company, Inc.), as officers of the organization. Elected to the board of directors are: Manuel Barberena (president, Pearson Mexico), Eileen Campbell (president, Millward Brown, Inc.), Judith S. Corson (founder, GfK Custom Research Inc.), Richard Day (president, Richard Day Research, Inc.), Jerry Thomas (president, Decision Analyst, Inc.), and Chet Zalesky (president, CMI). Representing the associate members on the CASRO board is Terry Coen (president, Survey Sampling, Inc.). Continuing as membprs of the board of directors are: Bob Cohen (president, Scarborough Research), George Harmon (executive vice president, DMS/America Online), Kevin Mabley (president, ROI Research Inc.), Peter Milla (senior vice president, Harris Interactive), David N. Richardson (CEO, Wirthlin Worldwide), Jim Robinson (president, Robinson and Muenster Associates), Mark A. Schulman (president, Schulman, Ronca, & Bucuvalas, Inc.), Mark Shugoll (president, Shugoll Research), Nicholas J. Tortorello (vice president/general manager, Lieberman Research Worldwide) and Don Ambrose (president, Consumer Contact) representing the Canadian Organization of Marketing Research Organizations (CAMRO).

CASRO also announced that it will be expanding its series of privacy briefings and its CASRO 3P privacy protection program. "CASRO has recognized its responsibility to inform its membership of professional research practitioners about the ways to satisfy privacy requirements while conducting survey research as privacy has increased in importance in our society," Talmey says. "CASRO’s 3P provides this critical information as well as materials specifically designed to assist professional researchers and their clients in complying with these regulations." (See this month "s Trade Talk for more on the topic of privacy regulations.)

NOP World, MORI, NFO Europe and SPSS MR have formed the European Consortium for Online Research (ECOR) to stimulate the growth of online research and expedite its adoption in Europe. Other companies have been invited to join ECOR and are currently considering participation. "By joining forces with industry leaders, we believe ECOR will create an environment for member companies to test and refine online sampiing methodology within select European markets," says Ian Dun-ell, president of SPSS MR.

New accounts/projects

IBM will work with market intelligence company Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS) as its primary corporate research provider. IBM will outsource its corporate headquarters market information needs to TNS, including customer commitment and global brand research. Led by TNS’ North American operation TNS Intersearch, the research will cover more than 85 countries and use TNSbranded products and services to serve IBM’s needs.

MasterCard has selected Perseus Development Corporation, a Braintree, Mass., Web survey software firm, as its enterprise software solution for implementing a survey research system. MasterCard is implementing Perseus Enterprise SurveySolutions software for a range of survey applications including customer satisfaction, employee feedback and training course evaluations.

The Austrian TV and radio corporation ORF has extended its current contract with GfK subsidiary Fessel-GfK by an additional three years to the end of 2006. Fessel-GfK measures TV ratings in Austria; the volume of this contract extension amounts to EUR 11.5 million.

Wilton, Conn.-based Greenfield Online has further strengthened its relationship with Microsoft Corp., and will use the MSN network of Internet services to recruit additional members of its online research panel of 1.2 million. Expansion plans will enable the company to grow the current population by more than 80 percent in 2003. In addition, by the end of Q2 2003, the company will have more than 250,000 new members of both its automotive and business-to-business panels respectively. These growth plans will help the company to expand both Greenfield Online’s full-service data collection, and sample-only services.

New companies/new divisions/relocations

Research firms Markitecture and Clark, Martire & Bartolomeo, Inc. have merged to form Markitecture Systems Group LLC. The firm, with offices in Norwalk, Conn., and Englewood Cliffs, N.J., will be organized into three divisions: Markitecture will focus on marketing strategy development and imple-. mentation; Clark, Martire, Bartolomeo & Shulman on polling and media research; and the Executive and Physician Interviewing Center (EPIC) on helping clients conduct with research specialized business markets.

Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS) has opened a health care research division in Italy, naming Fanny Gerli as director of the new division. She will be based in TNS’ Milan office and will be supported by Associate Director Letizia Galli in Rome.

Daniel Chan and Patrick Johnston have formed Vista Research Services, Inc. Chan is former data management director for Synovate (formerly Market Facts, Inc.) and Johnston managed the Chicago office of Harris Interactive Inc. The company will specialize in the use of SPSS MR Quantum software.

San Diego-based marketing information firm Claritas Inc., has formed a new analytical services division called Integras, specializing in high-end location research and customer analysis for marketing.

Full-service firm Research Management, Inc. has moved to new headquarters at 40-3 Burt Road, Deer Park, NY 11729.

Pamela Rogers Research of Boulder, Colo., has formed Research Details, a project management and report writing company providing support services for domestic and international qualitative and quantitative research proj ects.

Company earnings reports

Menlo Park, Calif.-based marketing information firm Knowledge Networks topped its high-water mark for quarterly revenue, recording $7.7 million in Q4 of 2002, bringing, the firm’s 2002 revenue total to $29.3 million, representing year-to-year growth of 37 percent compared to the 2001 figure of $21.4 million.

New York-based Arbitron Inc. announced results for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2002. For the fourth quarter 2002, the company reported revenue of $57.8 million, an increase of 12.3 percent over revenue of $51.4 million during the fourth quarter of 2001. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) for the quarter were $14.1 million, compared with EBIT of $9.3 million during the comparable period last year. Net income for the quarter was $6.5 million, compared with $2.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2001. Cost and expenses for the quarter increased by 4 percent, from $46.0 million in 2001 to $47.9 million in 2002. Interest expense declined $1.4 million from 2001 as a result of significant reductions in debt between the two periods.

Net income per share for the quarter increased to $0.21 (diluted), compared with $0.09 (diluted) during the comparable period last year. Effective January 1, 2002, the company discontinued the amortization of goodwill in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Had the company been required to adopt this accounting treatment effective as of January 1, 2001, net income and net income per share (diluted) for the three months ended December 31,2001 would have been $3.0 million and $0.10, respectively.

For the year ended December 31, 2002, revenue was $249.8 million, an increase of 9.8 percent over the $227.5 million reported for the same period last year. EBIT was $85.7 million, compared to $75.5 million in 2001, anincrease of 13.5 percent for the year. Net income for the year was $42.8 million or $1.42 per share (diluted), compared with $36.5 million, or $1.24 per share (diluted), last year. Had the discontinuation of amortization of goodwill been in effect in 2001, net income and net income per share (diluted) for the year ended December 31, 2001 would have been $38.2 million and $1.29, respectively.

Chicago-based Information Resources, Inc. reported results for the fourth quarter and year ending December 31, 2002. For the quarter ended December 31, 2002, IR_I reported a net loss of $4.8 million or ($0.16) per share compared to net income of $0.3 million or $0.01 per share for the fourth quarter of 2001. The fourth quarter 2002 results include a pre-tax charge of $7.8 million relating to a reduction in workforce in the United States and Europe. Excluding this charge, net income was $0.01 per share for the fourth quarter compared to $0.08 per share in 2001 before pre-tax net special charges of $3.0 million.

Revenue of $141.3 million was up 1 percent compared with last year. U.S. revenue was $102.6 million, a decline of 2 percent compared to the prior year. However, international revenue of $38.8 million was up 9 percent. Excluding the impact of currency, international revenue for the quarter was down 1 percent. In the U.S., the panel and analytics business had another strong quarter, with revenue up 13 percent over prior year. However, that improvement was offset by the continued contraction of the retail tracking business, where revenue declined by 6 percent. International revenue growth was negatively impacted by the performance of IRI’s German operation, which experienced operational difficulties during the year. Excluding Germany, international revenue grew 4 percent in local currencies.

IRI reported a net loss of $13.0 million or ($0.44) per share for 2002 compared to a net loss of $3.9 million or ($0.13) per share for 2001. lRI’s 2002 net loss includes a $7.1 million or $0.24 per share charge for the cumulative effect of a change in accounting for goodwill. Excluding this charge and pre-tax special charges of $14.9 million, net income for the year was $3.5 million or $0.12 per share for 2002. This compares to net income in 2001 of $5.8 million or $0.20 per share excluding pre-tax charges of $15.4 million.

Revenue of $554.8 million was down slightly from prior year. Revenue from the company’s U.S. business declined 2 percent for the year compared to 2001 while international revenue was up 6 percent over 2001 in U.S. dollars and 1 percent in local currencies.

Rochester, N.Y.-based Harris Interactive reported record revenue and earnings for its fiscal 2003 second quarter ended December 31, 2002. Revenue for the quarter was $32.5 million, up 7.3 percent over $30.3 million revenue reported for the first quarter of fiscal 2003. Revenues increased 31 percent over the same period a year ago (including Total Research revenues from the date of the acquisition, 11/01/01), or 24 percent on a fully comparable basis over the same period a year ago.

Net income for the fiscal second quarter was $2.1 million or $0.04 per share, compared to a net loss of $10.5 million or ($0.23) per share for the same period last year - which included a restructuring charge of $6.2 million or $0.14 per share. This compares to net income of $1.0 million or $0.02 per share for Q1 of fiscal 2003.

For the six-month period ended December 31, 2002, revenue was $62.8 million, up 50 percent from $41.9 million for the same six-month period a year ago. Net income for the current six-month pel:iod was $3.1 million or $0.06 per share, compared to a sixmonth loss of $13.7 million or ($0.34) per share for the same period a year ago. Revenue and net income include Total Research results only from November 1,2001. Net income for Q2 of fiscal 2002 includes restructuring charges as noted above.

News spotlight

Research leaders reach agreement on key industry actions

Leaders of the market research industry meeting in Geneva in January for the third ESOMAR/ARF Market Research Leaders Summit (RELEAS) decided to support a new worldwide initiative to represent the market research industry at the legislative level in all major world markets to promote laws that prOtect consumer privacy while assuring the freedom to perform market and opinion research.

They also decided to strengthen the added value of market research to businesses through a global online platform to share best practices and help create metrics to measure the return on investment of market research and marketing. "Creating worldwide presence at the legislative level is a major step ahead for the market research industry, which is in increasing demand, but is also experiencing increasing pressure from legislative proposals aimed at limiting the freedom of businesses to contact consumers or use consumer data," says Larry Mock, president of CMOR (the Council for Marketing and Opinion Research) and one of the initiators of the new Global Legislative Initiative (GLI).

"One of the main tasks of the Global Legislative Initiative is to inform lawmakers and the public about the distinctions between market research, which has a scientific basis and a strong track-record of guaranteeing confidentiality of data and consumer’s privacy, and other activities," says Mario van Hamersveld, director general of ESOMAR (the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research).

Market research providers have committed to additional funding of the Global Legislative Initiative, on top of current investments. The plan involves investments of up to $3.5 to $4 million covering the first three years of operations. Leaders will review the GLI’s accomplishments on a year-to-year basis.

Establishing the Global Legislative Initiative is a step-by-step process. Its European office, run by the Research Alliance, was already set up last year in Brussels. In the North American market since 2002, GLI has been represented by the North American Survey Research Alliance (NASRA), covering legislative efforts in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. GLI efforts will be set up inAsia and Latin America in 2004.

Other steps taken at the third and last RELEAS market research leaders summit:

  • Establishment of the Global Research Online Workshop (GROW), an online platform for market research professionals to share best practices confidentially, provide benchmarking tools for the measurement of ROI of market research and to collect trend data and case stories.
  • Initiatives to strengthen the position of market researchers operating on the demand side of the industry will be taken, including meetings such as the Managing Research for Profit Forum scheduled for May 2003 in Brussels, aimed at demonstrating and improving the return on investment of market research.
  • The industry will set up a World Industry Network, a flexible platform to continue the successful dialogue of leaders of both providers and market research clients that started with the RELEAS process in 2001. The Advertising Research Foundation and ESOMAR/EFAMRO (European Federation of Associations of Market Research Organizations) will organize industry leader gatherings once every two years, as well as meetings of representatives of market research associations, which will also take place every other year, enabling the industry to discuss trends and issues at a worldwide level on an annual basis.