Nielsen to Acquire Tribune Media’s Gracenote for $560 Million

NEW YORK: Nielsen has entered into an agreement with Tribune Media Company to purchase Gracenote, which provides media and entertainment metadata.

Through the transaction, Nielsen will acquire the data and technology that underpins the programming guides and personalized user experience for major video, music, audio and sports content. Gracenote provides reference information for more than 12 million movie and television listings and 200 million music tracks. The transaction is expected to close during the first quarter of 2017.

“Gracenote’s metadata and content recognition technology fuels the interfaces of the major video, music and in-car infotainment systems that consumers engage with every day. This acquisition provides Nielsen with a significant asset in our mission of measuring and understanding consumer behavior,” said Karthik Rao, the president of expanded verticals at Nielsen.

“For the past decade, Gracenote has connected millions of people every day to the TV shows, sports, movies and music they love, making entertainment more accessible and discoverable,” said John Batter, the CEO of Gracenote. “We are excited for the opportunity to take the next step with Nielsen and expand our global reach by continuing to deliver innovative, insights-based solutions to clients.”