A.C. Nielsen Jr., Who Built Ratings Firm, Dies at 92

[alp227]

Source: The New York Times

Arthur C. Nielsen Jr., who transformed the company his father founded in 1923 into an international leader in market research, helping to make its name synonymous with television ratings, died on Monday in Winnetka, Ill., where he lived most of his life. He was 92.

He had Parkinson’s disease, family members said in announcing his death.

The son of Arthur C. Nielsen, Mr. Nielsen became president of the A. C. Nielsen Company in 1957 and its chairman in 1975. He presided over the company’s growth from a modest operation, generating less than $4 million a year in revenue, to one with revenue of more than $680 million.

He worked for the company his entire adult life, joining in 1945 after serving four years in World War II as a major in the Corps of Engineers. One part of his wartime experience gave him insight into the potential importance of computers. He was assigned to construct a building to house a machine that would create elaborate tables to calculate the metrics for firing big artillery guns accurately.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/05/business/media/ac-nielsen-jr-who-transformed-research-firm-dies-at-92.html

[No Elephants]

1. No comment.

[bluestateguy]

2. Thanks a lot buddy!

Your stupid little contraption caused a lot of my favorite shows to get canceled.

[AnnieBW]

5. Word that

[JI7]

3. i'm sure it was useful some years ago but this method seems outdated now

[Ian David]

4. He was canceled due to low ratings. n/t