Nielsen Media Research, Inc., which has measured television advertising and programing since 1950, is one of the largest employers in Pinellas County. But starting in May, they'll lay off 328 workers in Oldsmar, reports the Tampa Bay Business Journal.
"They still are a major employer,” said Margie Manning, the finance editor at the Tampa Bay Business Journal. "They have a lot of technology jobs at Nielsen but the nature of those jobs is shifting away from people who have one skill set, toward people who a more technology-oriented set of skills."
Nielsen is eliminating its video diary business as a way to measure who's watching what.
"With more technology-enabled television, smart TVs and other digital options, there are just easier ways to get those measurements rather than asking people to actually physically write them down on paper and mail them in, then have people compile those responses manually,” Manning said.
The company is also laying off 396 workers in North Venice when it closes the Venice Diary Checking Center there. The remaining 52 employees will transfer to Nielsen's Sarasota office.
