| URL | http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/ |
|---|---|
| Available language(s) | English |
| Owner | Robert Seidman Bill Gorman |
| Created by | Robert Seidman Bill Gorman |
| Launched | September 2007[1] |
| Current status | Active |
TV by the Numbers is a website devoted to collecting and analyzing television ratings data in the United States. It is run by Bill Gorman and Robert Seidman, both of whom founded the website in 2007.[2]
An Internet and statistical analyst, Seidman had previously worked for IBM and Charles Schwab, and published an online newsletter about the Internet and AOL before founding TV by the Numbers; Gorman had been a AOL executive until 1998, and had read Seidman's column.[2][3] Friends since the early 1990s when they met near Washington D.C.,[1] both were fond of television, as Gorman loved numbers and Seidman enjoyed statistics relating to it; the subject of television ratings data entered into one of their conversations. Gorman was dismayed at being unable to find other blogs devoted solely to television data, and after a Google search confirmed this, he and Seidman thought of the idea for a website devoted solely to the subject.[2][3][4] In Gorman's words, while there were sites devoted to disseminating certain subjects, "there was no site that did the same thing for the television industry. That is, compile the numbers in a way, and analyze them in a way, that consumers would understand".[4] Gorman elaborated in a 2010 interview:
"We try to focus on publicly available facts. We're not breaking any news. We're not interviewing people to try and get the last bit of juicy gossip. We focus on publicly available, either ratings or financial information, and what that likely means for your favorite show. Whether they're coming back or going away".[4]
In response to the New York Times' decision in 2011 to start charging for access to online content, Gorman wrote an article stressing his website will remain free.[5]
According to one source, much of the information Gorman and Seidman had access to was not readily available to the media, and thus their efforts to analyze the data led to many "savvy readers" becoming interested in the workings of the ratings process.[6]
Seidman created the website's "Bubble Watch" feature, which aims to predict based upon ratings data which television shows will be canceled and renewed.[2]
TV by the Numbers has been cited by such media outlets as CNN,[7] The Associated Press,[8] National Public Radio,[9] and the Chicago Tribune.[10]