尼爾森 (NLSN) 2021 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, and welcome to the Q4 2021 Nielsen Holdings plc Earnings Conference Call runs. (Operator Instructions)

早安，歡迎參加尼爾森控股公司 2021 年第四季財報電話會議。 （操作員說明）

Sara Gubins, Senior Vice President, Head of Investor Relation and Treasury, please go ahead.

Sara Gubins，高級副總裁、投資者關係和財務主管，請繼續。

Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us to discuss Nielsen's Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2021 financial performance. I'm joined by our CEO, David Kenny; and our CFO, Linda Zukauckas. Our COO, Karthik Rao, will also be on the Q&A portion of the call. A slide presentation that we'll use on this call is available under the Events section of our Investor Relations website.

大家早安。感謝您與我們一起討論尼爾森 2021 年第四季和全年的財務表現。我們的執行長 David Kenny 也加入了我的行列。和我們的財務長 Linda Zukauckas。我們的營運長 Karthik Rao 也將參加電話會議的問答部分。我們將在本次電話會議中使用的幻燈片簡報可在我們的投資者關係網站的「活動」部分下找到。

Before we begin, I'd like to remind all of you that our remarks and responses to your questions today may contain forward-looking statements, including those related to our business plans and 2022 guidance. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties and only reflect our view as of today, February 28, and we are under no obligation to update. Our actual results in future periods may differ materially from those currently expected because of a number of risks and uncertainties, including those identified in our disclosure filings and materials such as our 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K reports, and in subsequent reports filed with the SEC, which are available on our website. We assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

在開始之前，我想提醒大家，我們今天的言論和對你們問題的答覆可能包含前瞻性陳述，包括與我們的業務計劃和 2022 年指導相關的陳述。前瞻性陳述本質上涉及風險和不確定性，僅反映我們截至今天 2 月 28 日的觀點，我們沒有義務更新。由於許多風險和不確定性，包括我們的揭露文件和10-K、10-Q 和8-K 報告等資料以及後續報告中確定的風險和不確定性，我們未來期間的實際結果可能與當前預期存在重大差異。除法律要求外，我們不承擔更新任何前瞻性聲明的義務。

On today's call, we will also refer to certain non-GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable GAAP measures are available in the earnings press release, which is available at the Investor Relations section of our website at nielsen.com.

在今天的電話會議上，我們也將提及某些非公認會計準則財務指標。這些非公認會計原則財務指標與最具可比性的公認會計原則指標的對帳可在收益新聞稿中找到，該新聞稿可在我們網站 nielsen.com 的投資者關係部分找到。

And now to start the call, I'd like to turn it over to our CEO, David Kenny.

現在開始通話，我想將其轉交給我們的執行長大衛肯尼。

Good morning, and thank you for joining the call today. I'd like to start by saying that we are deeply concerned about the evolving situation in the Ukraine. We are focused on the safety of our 107 employees and their families there. We've mobilized the team to help them navigate through this challenging time.

早安，感謝您今天加入通話。首先我想說的是，我們對烏克蘭局勢的演變深表關切。我們非常關注 107 名員工及其家人的安全。我們已經動員團隊幫助他們度過這個充滿挑戰的時期。

Turning now to 2021 results. I am extremely proud of everyone in the Nielsen organization. Our teams executed and delivered strong results in 2021 despite facing some unanticipated challenges. We successfully sold Nielsen Global Connect. We hit significant product milestones. We exceeded all of our original key 2021 guidance metrics: revenue, adjusted EBITDA margins and free cash flow. The clearest measure of our success is our ability to deliver mid-single-digit organic revenue growth over time. In 2021, we delivered organic revenue growth of 4.9%. And we continue to expect mid-single-digit organic revenue growth in 2022 and beyond.

現在轉向 2021 年的成果。我為尼爾森組織中的每個人感到非常自豪。儘管面臨一些意想不到的挑戰，我們的團隊在 2021 年執行並取得了強勁的成果。我們成功出售了 Nielsen Global Connect。我們達到了重要的產品里程碑。我們超越了 2021 年最初的所有關鍵指導指標：收入、調整後 EBITDA 利潤率和自由現金流。衡量我們成功的最明顯標準是我們有能力隨著時間的推移實現中個位數的有機收入成長。 2021 年，我們的有機收入成長了 4.9%。我們繼續預計 2022 年及以後有機收入將實現中個位數成長。

The drivers of our revenue growth give us confidence that we are delivering the diversification and innovation needed to accelerate growth over the next few years. Growth in the digital products is far outpacing the average in measurement, and Gracenote is growing in the high single digits, both reflecting our opportunities as consumers shift to streaming. The 6 largest U.S. media companies, some of our most vocal critics, in aggregate, grew faster in 2021 than in the prior few years as they added Nielsen's digital solutions. And growth outside the United States accelerated to 7% and will remain strong, driven by adoption of Nielsen's digital solutions.

我們收入成長的驅動因素讓我們相信，我們正在提供未來幾年加速成長所需的多元化和創新。數位產品的成長遠遠超過了平均水平，Gracenote 的成長速度也達到了高個位數，這都反映了隨著消費者轉向串流媒體，我們面臨的機會。美國最大的 6 家媒體公司（其中一些是我們最直言不諱的批評者）在添加了尼爾森的數位解決方案後，2021 年的整體成長速度比前幾年更快。在採用尼爾森數位解決方案的推動下，美國以外地區的成長加速至 7%，並將保持強勁。

This morning, we announced that our Board approved a $1 billion share repurchase authorization. This reflects the Board's confidence in both our short- and long-term growth and the view that our shares represent an attractive investment opportunity. Our significantly improved balance sheet provides us with the flexibility to return more capital to shareholders while continuing to invest in organic growth initiatives and pursue strategic tuck-in M&A if and when it makes sense.

今天早上，我們宣布董事會批准了 10 億美元的股票回購授權。這反映了董事會對我們的短期和長期成長的信心，以及我們的股票代表著有吸引力的投資機會的觀點。我們顯著改善的資產負債表使我們能夠靈活地向股東返還更多資本，同時繼續投資於有機成長計劃，並在有意義的情況下尋求策略性併購。

We recognize there's been a lot of noise recently, largely focused on our measurement of the declining U.S. linear TV audience. I want to separate the noise from reality. I'll frame my remarks around 5 key points. I'll then touch on impacting content before Linda reviews the financial results and 2022 guidance.

我們認識到最近出現了很多噪音，主要集中在我們對美國線性電視觀眾數量下降的衡量。我想將噪音與現實分開。我將圍繞 5 個要點來闡述我的言論。然後，在 Linda 審查財務業績和 2022 年指導之前，我將討論影響性內容。

First, Nielsen ONE, our cross-media measurement solution uniquely aligned with the needs of advertisers and their agencies. And they will ultimately choose the currency for ad spending. Second, media companies need to be digital or streaming-first to keep pace with audience behavior. Our relevance with leading digital-first players is growing, and we are adding increased value to traditional TV clients as they shift to streaming. Third, we are uniquely committed to measuring people, not just machines. Fourth, we are making the right investments in data, methods and quality. And fifth, we're executing on Nielsen ONE. We hit all of our 2021 milestones. We're on track to deliver the full solution later this year and begin driving industry adoption.

首先，Nielsen ONE，我們的跨媒體衡量解決方案，獨特地滿足廣告主及其代理商的需求。他們最終將選擇廣告支出的貨幣。其次，媒體公司需要數位化或串流媒體優先，以跟上受眾行為的腳步。我們與領先的數位優先播放器的相關性正在不斷增強，隨著傳統電視客戶轉向串流媒體，我們正在為他們增加更多的價值。第三，我們獨特地致力於測量人，而不僅僅是機器。第四，我們在數據、方法和品質方面進行了正確的投資。第五，我們正在 Nielsen ONE 上執行。我們實現了 2021 年的所有里程碑。我們預計在今年稍後提供完整的解決方案，並開始推動行業採用。

I'll now expand on each of these points. First, advertisers and their agencies will ultimately choose the currency for cross-media ad spending. And they want a solution that is trusted, independent and complete. Advertisers want to reach the people who buy their products at a frequency that builds brand image, and this means more streaming for most advertisers. Therefore, they want a solution that brings streaming and linear together. The World Federation of Advertisers laid out a set of requirements, which were further adapted by the Association of National Advertisers in the United States. The approach is clear about big data, direct integration, interoperability, with targeting and attribution solutions, and empirical validation with panel data. Nielsen ONE uniquely aligns with all of those requirements.

我現在將詳細闡述這些要點。首先，廣告商及其代理商最終將選擇跨媒體廣告支出的貨幣。他們想要一個值得信賴、獨立且完整的解決方案。廣告商希望以建立品牌形象的頻率接觸到購買其產品的人，這對大多數廣告商來說意味著更多的串流媒體。因此，他們需要一種將串流媒體和線性結合在一起的解決方案。世界廣告商聯合會提出了一系列要求，美國國家廣告商協會進一步調整了這些要求。此方法明確涉及大數據、直接整合、互通性、定位和歸因解決方案以及面板資料的實證驗證。 Nielsen ONE 獨特地滿足了所有這些要求。

It's also worth noting that the ANA is explicitly not trying to create a new currency. Importantly, advertisers and their agencies want to transact on one foundational currency that reflects in one number as close to 100% of the media and 100% of the people watching it. This is Nielsen ONE, which will leverage all of the many points where we are embedded in media planning and buying systems.

還值得注意的是，ANA 明確表示並不試圖創造一種新貨幣。重要的是，廣告商及其代理商希望以一種基礎貨幣進行交易，該貨幣可以反映接近 100% 的媒體和 100% 的觀眾。這就是尼爾森 ONE，它將利用我們嵌入媒體規劃和購買系統的所有許多點。

Second, the media industry has shifted to digital-first, and Nielsen's business is aligned with this. Our relevance is growing with both digital-first clients as well as traditional TV clients who are shifting towards streaming. I would remind you that every major change to expand media measurement has been met with resistance and headlines. This dates back to adding cable to broadcast in the 1990s and the addition of delayed viewing on a DVR in 2006. The latest move, the current move, to reconcile streaming and linear is perhaps the biggest change in the history of media. Friction can be expected, and we are seeing it. Our Gauge data shows that streaming reached an all-time high in January, now accounting for 38% of viewing within the 18 to 54 age demographic. Leading streaming-first platforms recognize the value of having a common metric for audiences as linear TV and digital converge. And no other third-party measurement is as valued as Nielsen across the digital ecosystem.

其次，媒體產業轉向數位優先，尼爾森的業務也與此一致。我們與數位優先客戶以及轉向串流媒體的傳統電視客戶的相關性正在不斷增強。我想提醒您，擴大媒體衡量的每項重大變革都遇到了阻力和頭條新聞。這可以追溯到 20 世紀 90 年代增加有線廣播，以及 2006 年在 DVR 上增加延遲觀看。摩擦是可以預料到的，我們也看到了。我們的 Gauge 數據顯示，1 月份串流觀看量達到歷史最高水平，目前佔 18 至 54 歲年齡層觀看人數的 38%。隨著線性電視和數位電視的融合，領先的串流媒體優先平台認識到為觀眾制定共同指標的價值。在整個數位生態系統中，沒有其他第三方衡量指標能像尼爾森一樣有價值。

Google recently cited measurement as a key to their success in connected TV. This year, Google is hosting YouTube Brandcast, their advertising showcase, during the week of the Upfronts, which historically has been a TV-centric week. Google is using Nielsen data to demonstrate the strength and relevance of their platform.

谷歌最近將測量視為其在連網電視領域成功的關鍵。今年，Google 將在 Upfronts 週期間舉辦 YouTube Brandcast，這是他們的廣告展示活動，而這一週歷來都是以電視為中心的一周。谷歌正在使用尼爾森數據來展示其平台的實力和相關性。

Also ahead of this year's Upfronts, Roku announced that they're adding Nielsen's Digital Ad Ratings as an audience guarantee, making Roku the first ad buying platform to launch Nielsen guarantees across streaming television.

同樣在今年的 Upfronts 之前，Roku 宣布他們將添加尼爾森的數位廣告評級作為觀眾保證，使 Roku 成為第一個在串流媒體電視上推出尼爾森保證的廣告購買平台。

Most of our top digital-first clients now also buy our TV data. A recent example of that is our renewed TV license agreement with The Trade Desk. Yes, there is more noise on the traditional TV side as our clients adjust their business models from linear to streaming. But privately, the conversations we have with clients and their contracts with us show that our business with them is much more productive than the noise suggests. We grew revenue with national media clients in the double-digits in the fourth quarter and high single-digits for the full year. 2021 revenue growth was driven by strong pricing, strong uptake of our digital solutions and cross-selling of our 3 essential solutions. And in fact, our growth accelerated from what we saw pre-pandemic in 2019. We expect continued solid growth with these clients going forward.

我們大多數頂級數位優先客戶現在也購買我們的電視數據。最近的一個例子是我們與 The Trade Desk 續約的電視授權協議。是的，隨著我們的客戶將其業務模式從線性調整為串流媒體，傳統電視方面的噪音越來越大。但私下里，我們與客戶的對話以及他們與我們簽訂的合約表明，我們與他們的業務比噪音所暗示的要高效得多。我們在第四季度與全國媒體客戶的收入實現了兩位數成長，全年實現了高個位數成長。 2021 年營收成長的推動因素包括強勁的定價、數位解決方案的強勁採用以及 3 種基本解決方案的交叉銷售。事實上，我們的成長比 2019 年大流行前的情況有所加快。

It's worth noting that Nielsen renewed 100% of our top 10 contracts over the last 3 years, 100%. Internationally, accelerated growth is driven in part by the adoption of our digital offerings. We are expanding digital and cross media in key markets around the world, including Mexico, Australia, Poland, Thailand, Denmark and Hong Kong.

值得注意的是，尼爾森在過去 3 年裡對我們排名前 10 的合約進行了 100% 的續約，100%。在國際上，加速成長的部分原因是我們數位產品的採用。我們正在全球主要市場拓展數位和跨媒體業務，包括墨西哥、澳洲、波蘭、泰國、丹麥和香港。

Third, we are uniquely committed to measuring people in a way that is scaled and representative. We measure people, not just devices, because people and not machines are who watches video. Nielsen is the only company with a high-quality probability sample for measuring video, and the only company that can back up our measurement with large-scale empirical evidence. Our big data sets are validated by the behaviors of over 100,000 people in our panel, which uniquely allows us to provide persons-level measurement that is representative of all audiences that is validated and audited. Unvalidated machine data often produces inflated audience estimates. While machines expand, the population is not growing, and neither is time, it's still 24 hours a day. So we uniquely measure the share of total time across total people.

第三，我們獨特地致力於以規模化且具代表性的方式衡量人員。我們衡量的是人，而不僅僅是設備，因為觀看影片的是人，而不是機器。尼爾森是唯一一家擁有用於測量影片的高品質機率樣本的公司，也是唯一一家能夠用大規模經驗證據支持我們的測量的公司。我們的大數據集經過我們小組中超過 100,000 人的行為驗證，這使我們能夠獨特地提供代表所有經過驗證和審核的受眾的人員級別測量。未經驗證的機器資料通常會產生誇大的受眾估計。雖然機器在擴張，但人口並沒有成長，時間也沒有成長，仍然是一天24小時。因此，我們獨特地衡量了總時間在總人數中所佔的比例。

Machines cannot tell you who is watching. There are serious deficiencies in models that are not tested with empirical evidence. Some in the industry aggregate machines into households and then use household averages to guestimate viewer demographic. Editors use credit data models, which are biased towards affluent consumer. Some used panels as small as 100 households, which is clearly statistically insufficient for validation.

機器無法告訴你誰在觀看。未經經驗證據檢驗的模型有嚴重缺陷。一些業內人士將機器聚集到家庭中，然後使用家庭平均值來估計觀眾人口統計。編輯使用信用資料模型，該模型偏向富裕消費者。有些使用的面板只有 100 戶家庭，這顯然不足以進行驗證。

Fourth, we are making the right investments in data, methods and quality to remain the best measure of how all people consume all media. And we do this at a scale and specificity greater than anyone else. We're integrating set-top box and ACR data from roughly 30 million households into our national TV measurement. Set-top box data provides valuable insight into consumption via cable and satellite subscription. That said, nearly half of all households no longer have a set-top box. We expect cord cutting to continue. So we're focused on connected TV data, which we believe will be more resilient over time.

第四，我們正在數據、方法和品質方面進行正確的投資，以保持衡量所有人如何消費所有媒體的最佳衡量標準。我們在這方面的規模和針對性比其他任何人都大。我們正在將大約 3000 萬個家庭的機上盒和 ACR 數據整合到我們的全國電視測量中。機上盒數據可提供有關有線和衛星訂閱消費的寶貴見解。也就是說，近一半的家庭不再擁有機上盒。我們預計剪線將會繼續。因此，我們專注於聯網電視數據，我們相信隨著時間的推移，這些數據將更具彈性。

During 2021, we doubled the number of connected TV partners, which enable us to measure 75% of CTV media spend. Our coverage includes Hulu, Amazon, Roku, YouTube, VIZIO WatchFree and Samsung TV Plus. When we include PCs and mobile devices, we cover 87% of total video digital spend. We cover 19 of the top streaming platforms, which together represent approximately 90% of streaming usage.

2021 年，我們的連網電視合作夥伴數量增加了一倍，這使我們能夠衡量 75% 的 CTV 媒體支出。我們的覆蓋範圍包括 Hulu、Amazon、Roku、YouTube、VIZIO WatchFree 和 Samsung TV Plus。當我們包括 PC 和行動裝置時，我們涵蓋了視訊數位總支出的 87%。我們涵蓋了 19 個頂級串流媒體平台，這些平台合計約佔串流媒體使用量的 90%。

We also have more data scientists than the next 5 players combined in the audience measurement space. This is 500 experts leading continued innovation. In fact, Nielsen is the clear innovation leader in media measurement. In 2021, we were issued over 230 U.S. patents, keeping pace with prior years. We also released significant contributions to over a dozen major open source projects in the cloud computing and analytics spaces. And finally, we are executing as planned, as committed, on Nielsen ONE. We are uniquely positioned to lead the industry into the next generation of audience measurement.

我們的資料科學家數量也比觀眾測量領域中排在其後 5 位的玩家的總和還要多。這是由 500 名專家領導的持續創新。事實上，尼爾森無疑是媒體衡量領域的創新領導者。 2021 年，我們獲得了 230 多項美國專利，與往年持平。我們也為雲端運算和分析領域的十多個主要開源專案做出了重大貢獻。最後，我們正在按照 Nielsen ONE 的計劃和承諾執行。我們擁有獨特的優勢，能夠引領業界進入下一代受眾測量。

Let me review our road map that we shared at Investor Day in 2020 and highlight what we accomplished in 2021.

讓我回顧一下我們在 2020 年投資者日分享的路線圖，並重點介紹我們在 2021 年所取得的成就。

Walking across the top. We completed the transformation of our digital methodology. We rolled out our ID Resolution System, including our cookie-less approach. Towards that end, we entered into a global strategic partnership with The Trade Desk, which scales our identity system globally. And we became a preferred measurement partner of The Trade Desk. This morning, we also announced an agreement to integrate Experian marketing data assets into our identity system in the United States. We're integrating always on measurement into Roku's ad buying platform, as I mentioned before, and we're focused on always on measurement with other digital platforms. We enhanced our metering technology and expanded our partnership with Extreme Reach to enable sub-minute reporting for greater comparability across linear and digital. And we announced our plan for individual commercial metrics in November.

步行穿過山頂。我們完成了數位方法論的轉換。我們推出了 ID 解析系統，包括無 cookie 方法。為此，我們與 The Trade Desk 建立了全球策略合作夥伴關係，在全球擴展我們的身分系統。我們成為 The Trade Desk 的首選測量合作夥伴。今天早上，我們還宣布了一項協議，將 Experian 行銷數據資產整合到我們在美國的身份系統中。正如我之前提到的，我們正在將「始終進行衡量」整合到 Roku 的廣告購買平台中，並且我們專注於「始終對其他數位平台進行衡量」。我們增強了計量技術，並擴大了與 Extreme Reach 的合作夥伴關係，以實現亞分鐘報告，從而提高線性和數字之間的可比性。我們在 11 月宣布了針對個人商業指標的計劃。

Going across the bottom, we have streaming meters installed in nearly half of our panel homes. We're adding them into new panel homes as we recruit them. We doubled our CTV partners. And we increased the coverage of MVPDs and digital distributors. We completed our rebuild of direct first-party integration with the 2 leading digital ad giants. And just last week, we released Impact Data for the inclusion of Big Data into national TV measurement. In alignment with client feedback, we'll launch Big Data as a stand-alone service in September in parallel with the existing currency. Clients who are ready to transact on new more robust metrics will be able to do so this fall.

從底部來看，我們在近一半的面板住宅中安裝了流水錶。當我們招募他們時，我們會將他們添加到新的面板房屋中。我們的 CTV 合作夥伴數量增加了一倍。我們也擴大了 MVPD 和數位發行商的覆蓋範圍。我們完成了與兩家領先的數位廣告巨頭直接第一方整合的重建。就在上週，我們發布了將大數據納入國家電視衡量的影響數據。根據客戶回饋，我們將於 9 月與現有貨幣同時推出大數據作為獨立服務。準備好根據新的更強大的指標進行交易的客戶將能夠在今年秋天這樣做。

We're adding addressable measurement, which is still fairly small. We're working with addressable providers to help them scale and drive adoption. In January, we moved to impression-based buying in local in conjunction with the inclusion of broadband-only homes into measurement. This is an important step in moving local to the same Nielsen ONE measurement as digital and national.

我們正在添加可尋址測量，但它仍然相當小。我們正在與可尋址的提供者合作，幫助他們擴大規模並推動採用。一月份，我們轉向基於印象的本地購買，並將僅使用寬頻的家庭納入衡量範圍。這是將本地測量轉向與數字和全國相同的 Nielsen ONE 測量的重要一步。

All together, we accelerated our road map and launched Nielsen ONE Alpha, the first iteration of Nielsen ONE Ads in January ahead of schedule. Alpha is specific to ad campaigns and gives clients an initial look at the user interface as well as audience deduplication across all screens, adding in CTV for the first time in addition to linear TV, computer and mobile. Alpha engages the trailblazing advertisers, agencies and media sellers who are shaping the cross-media marketplace.

我們齊心協力，加速了路線圖，並於 1 月提前推出了 Nielsen ONE Alpha，這是 Nielsen ONE Ads 的第一次迭代。 Alpha 專門針對廣告活動，讓客戶初步了解使用者介面以及所有螢幕上的受眾重複資料刪除，除了線性電視、電腦和行動裝置之外，還首次添加了 CTV。 Alpha 與正在塑造跨媒體市場的開創性廣告商、代理商和媒體銷售商合作。

Alpha includes companies like Kimberly-Clark, Disney and MAGNA. In fact, every major agency holding company is now engaged with Alpha. We have received positive feedback on Alpha. Clients like the utility and the interface of Nielsen ONE. They've also given a suggestion, given the growing role of first-party data in our agency partners cross-media strategies, we are prioritizing the measurement of audiences beyond age and gender, including first-party audiences in 2022. Our early discussions with advertisers also highlighted the importance of tying reach and frequency to outcomes on attribution. Accordingly, we are accelerating opportunities to integrate data from our suite of impact marketing solutions into Nielsen ONE later this year.

Alpha 包括金佰利、迪士尼和麥格納等公司。事實上，現在各大代理控股公司都在與 Alpha 合作。我們收到了有關 Alpha 的正面回饋。客戶喜歡 Nielsen ONE 的實用程式和介面。他們還提出了一項建議，鑑於第一方數據在我們的代理合作夥伴跨媒體策略中的作用越來越大，我們正在優先考慮年齡和性別之外的受眾衡量，包括2022 年的第一方受眾。因此，我們將在今年稍後加快將影響力行銷解決方案套件中的數據整合到 Nielsen ONE 中的機會。

The foundation for Nielsen ONE is squarely in place. By the end of this year, we'll share impact data for Nielsen ONE, which will provide the industry with a 2-year parallel period before we fully transition to cross-media metric by the fall 2024 season.

Nielsen ONE 的基礎已完全就位。到今年年底，我們將分享 Nielsen ONE 的影響數據，這將為行業提供兩年的平行期，然後我們將在 2024 年秋季全面過渡到跨媒體指標。

I'd like to point out that Nielsen ONE is more than a new currency for ad buying. After Nielsen ONE Ads, we will launch Nielsen ONE Content. That will provide studios, distributors and streaming platforms unprecedented insight into cross-screen consumption. And we'll launch Nielsen ONE Planning, which will empower agency and in-house media buyers to effectively forecast and plan cross-media native campaigns.

我想指出的是，Nielsen ONE 不僅僅是一種用於廣告購買的新貨幣。繼尼爾森 ONE 廣告之後，我們將推出尼爾森 ONE 內容。這將為工作室、發行商和串流媒體平台提供對跨螢幕消費前所未有的洞察力。我們將推出 Nielsen ONE Planning，這將使代理商和內部媒體購買者能夠有效地預測和規劃跨媒體原生行銷活動。

Behind this, Nielsen has always stood for gold standard quality. We've taken significant steps to improve quality controls, to meet the MRC accreditation standards and drive sustained quality improvement. We're identified with the MRC success criteria required for reaccreditation. And we expect to complete all necessary action items by midyear. After which, we expect the MRC members to vote on accreditation. We have reached our goal of 41,000 homes in the panel in 2021, and we'll reach our target of 41,600 by the end of this quarter. Only Nielsen has a scaled, representative, empirical person-level panel. And beyond panel quality, we are also focused on the highest standards for data quality controls, tech resilience and client communications.

在這背後，尼爾森始終代表著黃金標準的品質。我們已採取重大措施來改善品質控制，以滿足 MRC 認證標準並推動持續的品質改進。我們已確定符合重新認證所需的 MRC 成功標準。我們預計在年中之前完成所有必要的行動項目。之後，我們希望 MRC 成員就認證進行投票。我們已經實現了 2021 年納入 41,000 套住房的目標，並將在本季度末實現 41,600 套住房的目標。只有尼爾森擁有規模化、具代表性、經驗豐富的個人小組。除了面板品質之外，我們還專注於數據品質控制、技術彈性和客戶溝通的最高標準。

Let me turn to Outcomes, which we rebranded as Impact Marketing Solutions. Our portfolio spans preflight, advertising intelligence and cross-platform media planning; in-flight, audience activation; and post-flight, advertising effectiveness measurement. Let me cite a few examples of how we are expanding to include all media, all major markets and all major advertisers.

讓我談談成果，我們將其重新命名為影響力行銷解決方案。我們的產品組合涵蓋預檢、廣告情報和跨平台媒體規劃；飛行中，觀眾啟動；以及飛行後廣告效果測量。讓我舉幾個例子來說明我們如何擴展到所有媒體、所有主要市場和所有主要廣告商。

We launched campaign measurement in 40 new markets. We strengthened our capabilities in automotive through a new partnership with Polk. We've broadened our advertising intelligence offering to include paid social media ad spend. We expanded our upper funnel brand impact solutions with digital publishers like Spotify, TikTok, Twitter and others. We expanded coverage in our planning and optimization solution to include streaming data from connected TV. And as a point of external validation, Forrester's Q1 recent Marketing Measurement and Optimization Solutions Wave report said that Nielsen "provides advanced marketing performance insights with audience activation in a one-stop shop for advertisers." This report is widely used by advertisers when they evaluate vendors and is further validation that we are creating value for them.

我們在 40 個新市場推出了行銷活動衡量。透過與 Polk 建立新的合作夥伴關係，我們增強了我們在汽車領域的能力。我們擴大了廣告情報服務範圍，將付費社群媒體廣告支出納入其中。我們與 Spotify、TikTok、Twitter 等數位出版商擴大了上漏斗品牌影響力解決方案。我們擴大了規劃和優化解決方案的覆蓋範圍，將來自連網電視的串流資料納入。作為外部驗證的一個點，Forrester 最近第一季的營銷衡量和優化解決方案 Wave 報告表示，尼爾森「為廣告商提供了先進的營銷績效洞察以及一站式受眾激活服務」。該報告被廣告商在評估供應商時廣泛使用，並進一步驗證我們正在為他們創造價值。

Let me turn to Gracenote, our Content Solutions pillar. The Gracenote ID is the UPC code for video, sports and music content. Gracenote is the market leader in entertainment metadata worldwide. The Gracenote content identifiers, or Gracenote IDs, are widely deployed throughout the media ecosystem, enabling cross-platform linkage and universal search across video content. Content spend continues to grow rapidly. And we have new opportunities to help distributors better manage their catalogs to connect with and grow their audiences. We are leveraging audience measurement data and Gracenote metadata together with the continued build-out of our analytics offering. This includes the recent launch of Audience Predict, which enables data-driven decision-making around content acquisition and distribution. In 2022, we're focused on further growing Gracenote's geographic footprint. We're focused on expanding the usage of the Gracenote ID and launching new products to help distributors analyze, benchmark and derive insights from their catalogs.

讓我談談 Gracenote，我們的內容解答支柱。 Gracenote ID 是影片、運動和音樂內容的 UPC 代碼。 Gracenote 是全球娛樂元資料領域的市場領導者。 Gracenote 內容識別碼或 Gracenote ID 廣泛部署在整個媒體生態系統中，實現跨平台連結和跨影片內容的通用搜尋。內容支出持續快速成長。我們有新的機會幫助經銷商更好地管理他們的目錄，以聯繫和擴大他們的受眾。我們正在利用受眾測量數據和 Gracenote 元數據以及持續建立的分析產品。這包括最近推出的 Audience Predict，它支援圍繞內容獲取和分發進行數據驅動的決策。 2022 年，我們的重點是進一步擴大 Gracenote 的地理覆蓋範圍。我們專注於擴大 Gracenote ID 的使用範圍並推出新產品，以協助經銷商分析、基準測試並從他們的目錄中獲得見解。

To sum up, Nielsen delivered strong results in 2021. Nielsen has an unmatched position delivering value to clients across our 3 essential solutions. We are digital-first and global-first. That strategy aligns with the evolving media landscape. We are on track to deliver Nielsen ONE later this year. And we do remain positioned best positioned to lead the industry forward with cross-media measurement.

總而言之，尼爾森在 2021 年取得了強勁的業績。我們是數字第一和全球第一。該策略與不斷變化的媒體格局一致。我們預計在今年稍後交付尼爾森一號。我們確實仍然處於領先地位，能夠透過跨媒體衡量引領產業前進。

With that, I'll turn the call over to Linda to review the financials.

這樣，我會將電話轉給琳達來審查財務狀況。

Thank you, David, and good morning, everyone. I'm pleased to share the fourth quarter and full year results today, which reflects strong performance.

謝謝大衛，大家早安。我很高興今天分享第四季度和全年業績，這反映了強勁的業績。

Before I review the results, let me spend a moment on some of our key accomplishments in 2021. First, we completed the sale of our Connect business in March and reclassified it to discontinued operations effective as of Q1 '21. As a reminder, my remarks today focus on our results as if the Connect sale took place at the beginning of 2020, which helps with the year-over-year comparison.

在回顧結果之前，讓我先花點時間介紹一下2021 年的一些主要成就。一季起生效。提醒一下，我今天的演講重點關注我們的業績，就好像 Connect 銷售是在 2020 年初進行的，這有助於進行同比比較。

Second, we paid down $2.7 billion in debt or almost 1/3 of our debt and pushed out maturities by refinancing $1.25 billion of debt. We ended the year at 3.52x net debt leverage, our second consecutive quarter near the high end of our medium-term target. It's been 8 years since our leverage has been this low. Our delevering was facilitated by Connect sale proceeds and operating cash flows. And third, we met or exceeded our 2021 guidance across all key metrics.

其次，我們償還了 27 億美元的債務，即近 1/3 的債務，並透過為 12.5 億美元的債務再融資推遲了到期日。年終淨債務槓桿率為 3.52 倍，這是我們連續第二季接近中期目標的上限。我們的槓桿率已經達到如此低的水平，已經過了 8 年。 Connect 銷售收益和營運現金流促進了我們的去槓桿化。第三，我們在所有關鍵指標上都達到或超過了 2021 年指引。

Turning to the financial results. I'll start with Slide 8, which summarizes our revenue performance. Revenue was $894 million in the fourth quarter and $3.5 billion for the year. On an organic constant currency basis, revenue grew 4.7% in Q4 and 4.9% for the year, exceeding our guidance. Organic revenue adjusts for exits related to the 2020 optimization plan, the April sale to Roku of our Advanced Video Advertising business and the July acquisition of TVTY. As we guided, these had a 150 basis point impact on constant currency revenue growth.

轉向財務業績。我將從幻燈片 8 開始，它總結了我們的收入表現。第四季營收為 8.94 億美元，全年營收為 35 億美元。在有機固定貨幣基礎上，第四季營收成長 4.7%，全年營收成長 4.9%，超出了我們的指導。有機收入根據 2020 年優化計劃、4 月份向 Roku 出售高級視訊廣告業務以及 7 月份收購 TVTY 相關的退出進行調整。正如我們所指導的，這些對貨幣收入的恆定成長產生了 150 個基點的影響。

For the year, organic revenue grew 4.4% in the U.S. and 7% in international markets. Measurement revenue of $647 million in Q4 was up 5.2% organic. For the year, measurement revenue of $2.545 billion was up 4% organic. For both Q4 and the full year, national and digital measurement products were areas of strength. And from a client perspective, in 2021, we grew in the high single-digits with national media clients and had double-digit growth from digital-first clients. Local posted its third quarter of modest positive growth, but coupled with a weak Q1 was roughly flat for the year.

今年，美國市場的有機收入成長了 4.4%，國際市場的有機收入成長了 7%。第四季的測量收入為 6.47 億美元，有機成長 5.2%。今年測量收入為 25.45 億美元，有機成長 4%。無論是第四季還是全年，國家和數位測量產品都是優勢領域。從客戶的角度來看，2021 年，我們的全國媒體客戶實現了高個位數成長，數位優先客戶實現了兩位數成長。 Local 公佈第三季小幅正成長，但加上第一季的疲軟，今年的表現大致持平。

Impact and Content Q4 revenue of $247 million grew 3.4% organic. Full year revenue of $955 million grew 7.5% organic. For 2021, Impact organic revenue grew 7.3% and Content grew 7.8%, in line with our expectations of mid- to high single-digit organic growth for Impact and Content over the medium term. We saw improving trends in short-cycle revenue and strong growth in our sports business. In the fourth quarter, Impact revenue grew in the high single-digit organic, while Content revenue declined. For certain Gracenote clients, contract size and structures can vary, resulting in revenue recognized over time in some situations and at a point in time in others, creating some unevenness in any given quarter.

影響力和內容第四季營收為 2.47 億美元，有機成長 3.4%。全年營收 9.55 億美元，有機成長 7.5%。 2021 年，影響力有機收入成長 7.3%，內容成長 7.8%，符合我們對中期內影響力和內容實現中高個位數有機成長的預期。我們看到短週期收入的改善趨勢和體育業務的強勁成長。第四季度，影響力收入實現高個位數有機成長，而內容收入則下降。對於某些Gracenote 客戶，合約規模和結構可能會有所不同，導致在某些情況下隨著時間的推移而確認收入，而在其他情況下則在某個時間點確認收入，從而在任何特定季度造成一些不平衡。

This played out in the fourth quarter. It's not something that we've called out before, but it was more pronounced in the fourth quarter. So we wanted to provide a bit more context. We continue to expect strong growth from Content in 2022 and beyond.

這在第四節就上演了。我們以前沒有說過這樣的事情，但在第四季度更加明顯。所以我們想提供更多背景資訊。我們繼續預期 2022 年及以後內容將出現強勁成長。

The right side of the page shows revenue for the past 5 quarters as well as constant currency and organic revenue growth rate. As noted on the Q3 earnings call, Q4 faced a tougher comparison as COVID pressure began to subside in Q4 '20.

頁面右側顯示過去 5 個季度的收入以及固定匯率和有機收入成長率。正如第三季財報電話會議所指出的，隨著新冠疫情壓力在 20 年第四季開始消退，第四季面臨更嚴峻的比較。

Turning to Slide 9, which shows our performance in relation to our guidance and quarterly performance for adjusted EBITDA and margins. Adjusted EBITDA was $1.491 billion for the year, up 5.4% constant currency, just above the high end of the guidance range. Fourth quarter adjusted EBITDA was $351 million, down 7.4% constant currency. Full year margins were 42.6%, up 79 basis points on a constant currency basis and at the high end of the guidance range. This includes fourth quarter margins of 39.3%, down 435 basis points in constant currency, in line with our expectations.

轉向幻燈片 9，它顯示了我們的業績與我們的指導以及調整後 EBITDA 和利潤率的季度業績相關。全年調整後 EBITDA 為 14.91 億美元，以固定匯率計算成長 5.4%，略高於指引範圍的上限。第四季調整後 EBITDA 為 3.51 億美元，以固定匯率計算下降 7.4%。全年利潤率為 42.6%，以固定匯率計算成長 79 個基點，處於指導範圍的高端。其中第四季利潤率為 39.3%，以固定匯率計算下降 435 個基點，符合我們的預期。

We discussed this throughout the year, but I'll remind you of the factors that contributed to year-over-year margin expansion in the first half of the year and compression in the second half of the year. First, because our cost base is relatively fixed, revenue growth drives operating leverage. Second, the $100 million in temporary COVID-related cost cut in 2020 began to return in the second quarter. But they've not yet reached the levels we expect over time and to continue to trend up in 2022, largely due to hiring, merit increases, and travel and entertainment. Third, we began to implement our restructuring or optimization plan in Q3 '20. As a result, we saw a significant year-over-year benefit in first half margins, then started to lap the benefit in the second half. And finally, we invested in our key growth initiatives during the year.

我們全年都在討論這個問題，但我會提醒您，導致上半年利潤率同比擴張和下半年利潤率壓縮的因素。首先，由於我們的成本基礎相對固定，收入成長推動了營運槓桿。其次，2020 年因新冠疫情而臨時削減的 1 億美元成本在第二季開始恢復。但隨著時間的推移，它們尚未達到我們預期的水平，並將在 2022 年繼續呈上升趨勢，這主要是由於招募、績效增加以及旅行和娛樂。第三，我們在20年第三季開始實施重組或最佳化計畫。結果，我們看到上半年利潤率較去年同期大幅成長，然後下半年開始回升。最後，我們在這一年中投資了我們的關鍵成長計劃。

Fourth quarter adjusted EPS was $0.46 compared to $0.32 in Q4 '20, reflecting a lower tax rate, offset in part by lower EBITDA and higher depreciation and amortization. 2021 adjusted EPS was $1.81 compared to $1.45 in 2020, above the guidance range. This reflects higher adjusted EBITDA and lower depreciation and amortization, interest expense and tax expense versus 2020 on a comparable basis. The 2021 effective tax rate was nominal, mostly due to discrete items. We had a Q4 benefit of $143 million, related primarily to the utilization of foreign tax credits, benefits associated with closing audits and open tax years and a reduction in deferred tax liabilities. So it's really these discrete items that drove the Q4 benefit, which completely offset taxes on Q4 adjusted net income at a full year rate of 23.5%, which did benefit from lower state taxes.

第四季調整後每股收益為 0.46 美元，而 20 年第四季為 0.32 美元，反映了較低的稅率，但部分被較低的 EBITDA 和較高的折舊及攤銷所抵消。 2021 年調整後每股收益為 1.81 美元，而 2020 年為 1.45 美元，高於指導範圍。這反映了與 2020 年相比，調整後的 EBITDA 更高，折舊和攤提、利息費用和稅收費用更低。 2021 年的有效稅率是名義稅率，主要是因為離散項目所致。我們第四季的收益為 1.43 億美元，主要與利用外國稅收抵免、與結帳審計和開放納稅年度相關的收益以及遞延稅負債的減少有關。因此，正是這些離散項目推動了第四季度的效益，完全抵消了第四季度調整後淨利潤的稅收，全年稅率為 23.5%，這確實受益於較低的州稅。

Turning to free cash flow. We generated $647 million in 2021, up from $586 million in 2020 and at the high end of our guidance range. These results exclude $185 million of 2021 separation-related cash payments. Key drivers of 2021 free cash flow growth includes higher EBITDA and lower interest expense, partially offset by higher cash taxes. 2021 was a very strong year, as evidenced by these results. We continue to operate with greater discipline and to build on our track record of execution.

轉向自由現金流。我們在 2021 年創造了 6.47 億美元的收入，高於 2020 年的 5.86 億美元，處於我們指引範圍的高端。這些結果不包括 2021 年與離職相關的 1.85 億美元現金支付。 2021 年自由現金流成長的主要驅動因素包括更高的 EBITDA 和更低的利息支出，但部分被更高的現金稅所抵銷。這些結果證明，2021 年是非常強勁的一年。我們繼續以更嚴格的紀律運作，並鞏固我們的執行記錄。

Now let's turn to the outlook and 2022 guidance on Slide 11. Our guidance represents an important building block as we progress towards our medium-term framework. We expect organic revenue growth of 4% to 5%, in line with our medium-term outlook of mid-single-digit growth. This incorporates our expectation of low to mid-single-digit organic revenue growth in Measurement and mid- to high single-digit growth in Impact and Content. As a reminder, Measurement includes our local and audio products, which we expect to be up only slightly in 2022. We expect constant currency revenue to grow 3.5% to 4.5% as the 2021 business exits and acquisitions have a 50 basis point impact.

現在讓我們轉向幻燈片 11 上的展望和 2022 年指導。我們預計有機收入將成長 4% 至 5%，符合我們中個位數成長的中期前景。這包含了我們對衡量方面低至中個位數有機收入成長以及影響力和內容中中至高個位數成長的預期。提醒一下，測量包括我們的本地和音訊產品，我們預計 2022 年只會小幅成長。

From a timing perspective, we expect revenue growth to be faster in the second half, with Q1 revenue growth below the full year guidance range. This is largely due to the benefits from growth initiatives building throughout the year. The quarterly uneven as I described for Content will also play out in Q1 of this year with a challenging comparison. For the year, we expect high single-digit growth in Content. We expect adjusted EBITDA margins to be flat to up 30 basis points for a range of 42.6% to 42.9%. And for margins, from a timing perspective, we expect compression in the first half of the year and expansion in the second half, with first quarter margin contraction of a similar magnitude to the Q4 '21 contraction.

從時間角度來看，我們預計下半年營收成長將更快，第一季營收成長低於全年指引範圍。這主要歸功於全年建立的成長計畫所帶來的好處。正如我在內容中所描述的季度不平衡情況也將在今年第一季出現，這是一個具有挑戰性的比較。今年，我們預計內容將實現高個位數成長。我們預計調整後 EBITDA 利潤率將持平至上升 30 個基點，範圍為 42.6% 至 42.9%。對於利潤率，從時間角度來看，我們預計上半年會壓縮，下半年會擴張，第一季利潤率收縮與 21 年第四季的收縮幅度相似。

There are a couple of dynamics in play here. First is the continued return of costs that had been temporarily reduced due to COVID. This is most pronounced in the first half. And second is near-term investments in growth initiatives and in the panel, which had a more meaningful year-over-year impact in the first half of the year. And third, faster revenue growth in the second half will support margin expansion.

這裡有一些動力在發揮作用。首先是因新冠疫情而暫時減少的成本繼續回歸。這一點在上半場表現得最為明顯。其次是對成長計畫和麵板的近期投資，這在今年上半年產生了更有意義的同比影響。第三，下半年營收成長加速將支持利潤率擴張。

We continue to expect to reach our medium-term margin target of 43.5% in 2023, with margin expansion accelerating on revenue growth and moderating investments. Adjusted EPS is expected to be in the range of $1.81 to $1.91 compared to $1.81 in 2021. This reflects adjusted EBITDA growth and related underlying guidance assumptions, which are in the appendix, and includes an effective tax rate of 23% to 25% compared to 23.5% in 2021 before discrete items. Net interest expense of $270 million to $280 million versus $272 million in 2021. And net debt leverage in our 3 to 3.5x target range, where we have been for the past couple of quarters.

我們繼續預期 2023 年將達到 43.5% 的中期利潤率目標，營收成長和投資放緩將加速利潤率擴張。調整後每股收益預計在1.81 至1.91 美元之間，而2021 年為1.81 美元。相較於2021 年）。淨利息支出為 2.7 億至 2.8 億美元，而 2021 年為 2.72 億美元。

We expect free cash flow to be in the range of $650 million to $700 million compared to $647 million in 2021. This reflects higher EBITDA, offset in part by increased CapEx due to investments in Nielsen ONE and the panel. And higher cash taxes due to higher taxable income and fewer available tax credits.

我們預計自由現金流將在 6.5 億至 7 億美元之間，而 2021 年為 6.47 億美元。由於應稅收入增加和可用稅收抵免減少，現金稅也增加。

As we look beyond 2022 and think about our medium-term free cash flow target, there are a few variables that are putting some pressure on our target of over $800 million in free cash flow and 50% conversion for 2023. On the one hand, we expect faster EBITDA growth to drive higher 2023 free cash flow. On the other hand, there is cash taxes, which I mentioned as impacting our 2022 free cash flow forecast. It's been almost a year since we closed on the Connect sale, and we now have a better feel for our tax profile and taxable income mix. We also have fewer available tax credits than in the past. And certain tax reform provisions will start to take effect in 2022 and also in 2023. All of this has us paying higher cash taxes.

當我們展望 2022 年後並思考我們的中期自由現金流目標時，有一些變數對我們 2023 年超過 8 億美元的自由現金流和 50% 轉換率的目標帶來了一些壓力。 EBITDA 更快成長將推動2023 年自由現金流增加。另一方面，我提到現金稅會影響我們對 2022 年自由現金流的預測。自從我們完成 Connect 銷售以來已經快一年了，現在我們對我們的稅務狀況和應稅收入組合有了更好的認識。我們的可用稅收抵免也比過去少。某些稅務改革條款將於 2022 年和 2023 年開始生效。

Next is CapEx. We are focused on driving efficiency in our CapEx and OpEx. And we expect CapEx as a percent of revenue to come down over time. In the near term, however, we see opportunities to accelerate CapEx to advance our road map and to improve and modernize our panel. These won't represent a permanent step-up in CapEx but are likely to push out, reaching the 7.5% target for CapEx as a percent of revenue by roughly a year. And finally, share buybacks could impact interest expense, but would also result in higher free cash flow per share with the lower share count. As David mentioned, our Board has approved a share repurchase authorization. We see significant value in our shares. The impact of share repurchases will vary based on timing and pace. And the guidance we're providing today does not factor in any impact from the repurchases.

接下來是資本支出。我們專注於提高資本支出和營運支出的效率。我們預期資本支出佔收入的百分比會隨著時間的推移而下降。然而，在短期內，我們看到了加速資本支出的機會，以推進我們的路線圖並改進和現代化我們的面板。這些並不代表資本支出的永久性成長，但很可能會提前約一年，達到資本支出佔收入百分比 7.5% 的目標。最後，股票回購可能會影響利息支出，但也會導致每股自由現金流增加且股票數量減少。正如大衛所提到的，我們的董事會已批准股票回購授權。我們看到我們的股票具有巨大的價值。股票回購的影響將根據時間和節奏而有所不同。我們今天提供的指導並未考慮回購的任何影響。

In closing, I'm very proud of Nielsen's employees and our results in 2021. We remain confident in our path forward and our ability to drive growth and increase shareholder value. And now back to Sara for Q&A.

最後，我為尼爾森的員工和我們 2021 年的業績感到非常自豪。現在回到薩拉進行問答。

Thanks, Linda. With that, let's turn to Q&A. Operator, can you open up the line, please?

謝謝，琳達。接下來，我們進入問答環節。接線員，您能開通線路嗎？

(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from Andrew Steinerman from JPMorgan.

（操作員說明）您的第一個問題來自摩根大通的安德魯·斯坦納曼（Andrew Steinerman）。

I just wanted to know, when you look at Slide #5, if you feel that the road map is really within your own control? Or do you feel like this is what you're laying out, and really the gating factor will be the timing when buyers and sellers agree? And then also, when you look at the Alpha product that you showed them already, does this include both the smart TV data and the set-top box data or just a subset of those 2 big data partners?

我只是想知道，當你看第五張投影片時，你是否覺得路線圖真的在你自己的掌控之中？或者您覺得這就是您所佈置的，而真正的限制因素將是買家和賣家達成一致的時機？然後，當您查看已經向他們展示的 Alpha 產品時，這是否包括智慧電視數據和機上盒數據，還是僅包括這兩個大數據合作夥伴的子集？

Thank you, Andrew. I appreciate the question. First of all, the road map we laid out is absolutely within our control. Those are the modules we're delivering. We're delivering those on time, and people are using them. I would say there is a factor of adoption, which is why last year was laying a foundation. This year is much more about engagement as folks transition. Of course, folks continue to use Nielsen currency today, but we are making more modules available so that the smart buyers and sellers can move forward more quickly. So I would say what we have to watch is the -- on the other end, when can we actually shut down the legacy systems and only have one.

謝謝你，安德魯。我很欣賞這個問題。首先，我們所製定的路線圖完全在我們的掌控之中。這些是我們正在提供的模組。我們按時交付這些，人們正在使用它們。我想說有一個採用的因素，這就是為什麼去年奠定了基礎。隨著人們的轉變，今年更多的是關於參與。當然，人們今天繼續使用尼爾森貨幣，但我們正在提供更多模組，以便聰明的買家和賣家可以更快地前進。所以我想說的是，我們必須關注的是——另一方面，我們什麼時候才能真正關閉遺留系統並且只擁有一個。

And we will work with the industry on that. I don't think we're going to have the industry in a position that can't operate. I would say most of the buyers are quite eager to move on. They think all clearly. They want to see this done. Some of them are speaking directly to the MRC to make sure it gets accredited.

我們將與業界就此合作。我認為我們不會讓這個行業陷入無法運作的境地。我想說大多數買家都非常渴望繼續前進。他們都想得很清楚。他們希望看到這件事完成。其中一些人直接與 MRC 溝通，以確保其獲得認可。

Some of the sellers aren't ready. And so we'll work with them. But quite honestly, I think the buyers are going to demand it sooner versus later. Secondly, in Alpha, of course, we're showing big data, which includes smart TV data and set-top box data. And we are going to move forward to actually having that in the market by this fall for everybody outside of Alpha because there's been such a demand for the robustness that comes with including that in measurement.

有些賣家還沒準備好。所以我們將與他們合作。但老實說，我認為買家遲早會提出要求。其次，當然在Alpha中，我們展示的是大數據，包括智慧電視數據和機上盒數據。我們將在今年秋天為 Alpha 之外的所有人真正推出這種產品，因為人們對測量中的穩健性有著如此大的需求。

Your next question comes from Dan Salmon from BMO Capital Markets.

您的下一個問題來自 BMO 資本市場的 Dan Salmon。

Okay. Great. David, I had 2 questions to follow up on a couple of your prepared remarks. The first was, once again, you said pretty clearly that you think that both brands and agencies at the buy side have a strong preference for a single currency. And yet we do see test of alternative currencies gaining some traction on the buy side. We can see comments from that group that industry conferences estimating percentages of the upfront that might be transacted on alternative currencies.

好的。偉大的。大衛，我有兩個問題要跟進你準備好的幾句話。首先，您再次明確表示，您認為買方的品牌和機構都對單一貨幣有強烈的偏好。然而，我們確實看到替代貨幣的測試在買方方面獲得了一些吸引力。我們可以看到該組織的評論，行業會議估計可能以替代貨幣進行交易的預付款百分比。

So can you help us close that gap on what you're seeing versus some of the green shoots of activity that suggests that alternative currencies are being tested by the buy side? And then the second one was your comments on the feedback that you're getting from that group about wanting to better measure and better integrate first-party data. I would love to hear just a little bit more about that, and whether that's a potential area where M&A could help accelerate based on that feedback.

那麼，您能否幫助我們縮小您所看到的情況與一些表明買方正在測試替代貨幣的活動之間的差距？第二個是您對從該小組獲得的關於希望更好地衡量和更好地整合第一方數據的回饋的評論。我很想聽聽更多關於這一點的信息，以及這是否是一個可以根據反饋加速併購的潛在領域。

Good. Thank you, Dan, for both questions. I'm going to take the first and I'm going to let Karthik handle the second because he's got a lot of very recent data, and also can update you what we're doing with first-party data. So first of all, there have always been secondary guarantees. I think it's been useful for brands and agencies to look beyond basic region frequency for things beyond that. Once they price on a core currency, that hasn't changed, and I think experimentation is useful. We learn from it.

好的。謝謝丹提出的兩個問題。我將處理第一個，我將讓 Karthik 處理第二個，因為他有很多最新數據，並且還可以向您更新我們正在使用第一方數據所做的事情。所以首先，一直都有二次保固。我認為對於品牌和代理商來說，超越基本區域頻率來尋找除此之外的東西是有用的。一旦他們以核心貨幣定價，這一點就不會改變，我認為實驗是有用的。我們從中學習。

So I think you just have to listen very carefully to what folks are saying. But of course, people are going to experiment. That said, when I really talk to investment managers and the heads of agencies and most of the big advertisers, here's what they start with. They start with there's a lot of enthusiasm about Connected TV. There's a lot of enthusiasm about technology. Boy, these guys have spent a lot of money on new content for their streaming platform. Here's what hasn't changed.

所以我認為你只需要非常仔細地聽人們在說什麼。但當然，人們會進行實驗。也就是說，當我真正與投資經理、機構負責人以及大多數大型廣告商交談時，他們是這樣開始的。他們首先對連網電視抱持著很大的熱情。人們對科技充滿熱情。天哪，這些人在他們的串流平台上花了很多錢購買新內容。這是沒有改變的。

There are still 320 million Americans, that's only growing 4.4% a year. That's getting older. It's getting more diverse. Secondly, here's what hasn't changed. There's only 24 hours a day. People need to sleep. People need to work. It seems that media consumption is kind of tapped out around 10 hours or -- plus or minus per day. Therefore, our fiduciary responsibility to our clients is to make sure we invest to maximize that. If we have metrics that can't reconcile that to a fixed population and a fixed time, there's a risk of double accounting. There's a risk of not getting full value.

美國人仍然有 3.2 億，每年僅成長 4.4%。那是越來越老了。越來越多樣化了。其次，這是沒有改變的。一天只有24小時。人們需要睡覺。人們需要工作。媒體消費似乎每天約 10 小時就耗盡了。因此，我們對客戶的信託責任是確保我們的投資能最大化這一目標。如果我們的指標無法將其與固定人口和固定時間相協調，則存在重複核算的風險。存在無法獲得全部價值的風險。

And quite honestly, I think there is a frustration with paying more for less in some of the traditional linear business, which the agencies have been clear about. So they're looking for that leverage. And so that's why I believe they're still going to want that single base case of what's going on in the market. That doesn't mean that they won't add secondary guarantees. That's why I had that conclusion, and I totally believe that it's going to play out in this and every other upfront from here.

老實說，我認為在一些傳統的線性業務中，花更多的錢少花錢會讓人感到沮喪，這一點各機構已經很清楚了。所以他們正在尋找這種槓桿作用。這就是為什麼我相信他們仍然想要市場上正在發生的事情的單一基本情況。這並不意味著他們不會增加二次擔保。這就是我得出這個結論的原因，我完全相信它會在這件事以及從這裡開始的所有其他事情中發揮作用。

Let me go to the second question on first-party data. Karthik?

我來說第二個問題，關於第一方資料。卡蒂克？

Yes, Dan. Thanks for that. First, we have been providing advanced audiences -- first-party audiences for clients even today. What we're really talking about is the amazing feedback we got around how do we like that up within Alpha, which ultimately is Nielsen ONE Ads. And so we are prioritizing that so that agencies and other players with first-party data can view audience measurement not only against the total population, but also against the audiences that matter to a brand or a buy.

是的，丹。謝謝你。首先，即使在今天，我們也一直在為客戶提供高級受眾——第一方受眾。我們真正談論的是我們在 Alpha 中獲得的令人驚嘆的回饋，最終是 Nielsen ONE Ads。因此，我們優先考慮這一點，以便擁有第一方數據的機構和其他參與者不僅可以根據總人口查看受眾衡量結果，還可以根據對品牌或購買重要的受眾來查看受眾衡量結果。

So we are incorporating that into the road map for later this year, and we're very excited. It also signifies the kinds of conversations we're having and the feedback we've been getting on Alpha and all of the use cases that we want ultimately to power through Nielsen ONE. So it signifies a big opportunity for us. And we will obviously look at M&A as a continued way for us to increase our capability. And we'll comment more on that whenever we're ready. But we're super excited with the feedback on Nielsen ONE Alpha and how it's going to evolve even in 2022.

因此，我們正在將其納入今年稍後的路線圖中，我們非常興奮。它還代表了我們正在進行的對話類型、我們從 Alpha 獲得的反饋以及我們最終希望透過 Nielsen ONE 提供支援的所有用例。所以這對我們來說意味著一個巨大的機會。顯然，我們會將併購視為增強我們能力的持續方式。只要我們準備好，我們就會對此發表更多評論。但我們對 Nielsen ONE Alpha 的反饋以及它在 2022 年將如何發展感到非常興奮。

Okay. Great. And so just to be clear, David, you would expect 100% of the upfront to include Nielsen data in some form or another?

好的。偉大的。所以需要明確的是，David，您會期望 100% 的前期費用以某種形式包含尼爾森數據嗎？

I would. But that doesn't mean that there will be secondary guarantees. 100%? Will somebody try something? I'm not going to say that. There can't be some minor exception. I don't see anything widespread. I think it's going to be really hard to go back to your client with something that's not audited. And we are the most inspected, most audited service out there. And I think to value price, people are going to need the total to 100% of audience time, and nobody can do that but Nielsen.

我會的。但這並不代表會有二次保固。 100%？有人會嘗試一些東西嗎？我不會這麼說。不能有任何微小的例外。我沒有看到任何廣泛傳播的東西。我認為用未經審核的東西回傳給你的客戶是非常困難的。我們是接受最嚴格檢查和審計的服務機構。我認為要重視價格，人們需要 100% 的觀眾時間，除了尼爾森，沒有人能做到這一點。

Your next question comes from Doug Arthur from Huber Research.

您的下一個問題來自 Huber Research 的 Doug Arthur。

I just wanted to shift the focus for a second to Impact, Content, I guess, this is now called. I mean, what -- Linda, you called out the timing on contract renewals in Content. You did have a fairly easy comp. I guess the relevant question is, do you -- longer term, is a 6% to 10% organic growth range for both of those Impact and Content? Is that still in the ballpark?

我只是想暫時將焦點轉移到影響力、內容上，我想，這就是現在所說的。我的意思是，琳達，你在內容中提到了合約續約的時間。你確實有一個相當簡單的比較。我想相關的問題是，從長遠來看，影響力和內容的有機成長範圍是 6% 到 10% 嗎？那還在球場裡嗎？

Yes. I can take that one, Doug. Thanks for the question. So you are right about the comp. And if we look at 2021, Impact grew 7.3%, Content grew 7.8%. But Q4, if you look at Q4, the Impact and Content organic revenue growth was down. It was 3.4%. But it's a little bit of a tale of 2 cities. The Impact revenue grew in the high single-digits and Content declined. And it's really what I talked about in my prepared remarks. For some of our Gracenote clients, the structure of the contract -- the size and structure can vary. And that just presents some unevenness, and we saw that in the fourth quarter. And we will see that also in the first quarter. At this point in time, we're not really calling it beyond that. So I think the overall characterization that you described is right. We do continue to expect mid- to high single-digit organic revenue growth for Impact and Content on a go-forward basis.

是的。我可以接受那個，道格。謝謝你的提問。所以你對補償的看法是正確的。如果我們看看 2021 年，影響力成長了 7.3%，內容成長了 7.8%。但第四季度，如果你看看第四季度，就會發現影響力和內容有機收入成長有所下降。是3.4%。但這有點像是兩個城市的故事。影響力收入以高個位數成長，而內容收入則下降。這確實是我在準備好的發言中談到的內容。對於我們的一些 Gracenote 客戶來說，合約的結構——大小和結構可能會有所不同。這只是帶來了一些不平衡，我們在第四季就看到了這一點。我們也將在第一季看到這一點。目前，我們並沒有真正將其稱為超出範圍。所以我認為你所描述的總體特徵是正確的。我們仍然預期影響力和內容的有機收入將在未來實現中高個位數的有機成長。

Your next question comes from Ashish Sabadra from RBC Capital Market.

您的下一個問題來自 RBC 資本市場的 Ashish Sabadra。

Maybe just a quick question on the EBITDA and your confidence of getting 250 basis point of margin expansion by fiscal year '23 despite some of the headwinds you are seeing in fiscal year '22. I wondering if you could comment on that one.

也許只是一個關於 EBITDA 的簡單問題，以及您對到 23 財年實現 250 個基點的利潤率擴張的信心，儘管您在 22 財年看到了一些不利因素。我想知道你是否可以對此發表評論。

Yes. So we do still feel confident about the overall medium-term target that you're referencing, which we put out there at Investor Day. And it really stems first from growth from an overall EBITDA perspective, and that's important. And you see it in the guidance that we gave today, that we're still feeling good about revenue growth. We are investing in the business, and nothing has really changed there. But those investments we do think are smart investments, and they will drive revenue growth.

是的。因此，我們仍然對您提到的整體中期目標充滿信心，我們在投資者日上提出了這一目標。從整體 EBITDA 角度來看，它確實首先源於成長，這一點很重要。您可以從我們今天提供的指導中看到，我們仍然對收入成長感到滿意。我們正在投資這項業務，但那裡沒有任何真正的改變。但我們確實認為這些投資是明智的投資，它們將推動收入成長。

We're also expanding the panel, and those investments will start to moderate over time. And then we are driving other efficiencies. We're re-platforming our ERP within the company right now, which covers all the financials, all of our people globally. We're also taking a fresh look at real estate. The world has changed a lot. We have the pleasure of being in the office today. But it's the first time we have done earnings in our headquarter offices since April of 2020. So it's -- the world has changed quite a lot and that has us looking at our overall real estate portfolio. But stepping back from it all, we do feel good about the 43.5% margins in 2023 and in line with what we put out here at Investor Day.

我們也正在擴大該小組，隨著時間的推移，這些投資將開始放緩。然後我們正在提高其他效率。我們現在正在公司內部重新建構 ERP 平台，涵蓋所有財務部門以及全球所有員工。我們也正在重新審視房地產。世界發生了很大變化。我們今天很高興來到辦公室。但這是自 2020 年 4 月以來我們首次在總部辦公室公佈收益。但回過頭來看，我們確實對 2023 年 43.5% 的利潤率感到滿意，這與我們在投資者日公佈的情況相符。

That's very helpful color, Linda. And maybe if I can just ask a question on the revenue growth trajectory. You talked about the Content headwind potentially in the first quarter. But I was just wondering, are there anything else that we need to be cognizant of which is weighing on the revenue growth in the first quarter but potentially driving an improvement through the rest of the year?

這是非常有用的顏色，琳達。也許我可以問一個關於營收成長軌跡的問題。您談到了第一季可能出現的內容逆風。但我只是想知道，還有什麼我們需要認識到的因素會影響第一季的營收成長，但可能會推動今年剩餘時間的改善？

Yes. So I think it's probably just important to focus on the full year guide that we gave. And then I gave you a little bit of first half, second half color. But beyond that, there's really nothing other than the -- what I referenced in Q1. Aside from that, I think in line with the 4% to 5% guide that I gave.

是的。所以我認為關注我們提供的全年指南可能很重要。然後我給了你一點前半部、後半部的顏色。但除此之外，除了我在第一季提到的內容之外，真的沒有其他的了。除此之外，我認為符合我給的 4% 到 5% 的指導。

Your next question comes from Matthew Thornton from Truist Securities.

您的下一個問題來自 Truist Securities 的 Matthew Thornton。

Maybe 2 questions, if I could. The second one is more of a housekeeping question. First, I guess, can you remind us a little -- or maybe talk a little bit about, as we think about exiting '21 and into '22, how we should think about any type of impact you're seeing from supply chain disruption? Obviously, there's been some disruption, whether it's the auto vertical, CPG, consumer electronics, a few others.

如果可以的話，也許有兩個問題。第二個問題更多的是一個內務管理問題。首先，我想，您能否提醒我們一點，或者談談，當我們考慮退出 21 世紀並進入 22 世紀時，我們應該如何考慮供應鏈中斷所帶來的任何類型的影響？顯然，無論是汽車垂直產業、消費品、消費性電子產品或其他一些產業，都出現了一些顛覆。

I'm curious if that's impacted maybe your short-cycle business. And similarly, as we get to the back half of the year, maybe you can remind us how political kind of plays into that short-cycle business as well. So that's the first question. And then secondly, a housekeeping. Linda, should we think about any separation-related costs still kind of carrying over into 2022? Or is that kind of all behind us now?

我很好奇這是否會影響您的短週期業務。同樣，當我們進入今年下半年時，也許你可以提醒我們政治也是如何影響短週期業務的。這是第一個問題。其次，是家事服務。琳達，我們是否應該考慮任何與離職相關的成本仍會延續到 2022 年？或者現在這一切都已經過去了嗎？

Thanks, Matthew. I'll just hit on the supply chain. I think there's 2 components to that. One is the internal, which is just us being able to manage the headwinds from supply chain, particularly in our meter space in 2021. So we had an amazing team that we put together that managed through the entire year, ordering in advance so that we can meet all of our meter and panel plans and general hardware needs. So it's an area we're going to continue to keep a very close eye on.

謝謝，馬修。我只想談談供應鏈。我認為這有兩個組成部分。一個是內部因素，這就是我們能夠管理來自供應鏈的逆風，特別是在 2021 年我們的米空間中。滿足我們所有的儀表和麵板計劃以及一般硬體需求。因此，這是我們將繼續密切關注的領域。

Obviously, ordering in advance is a huge component of the strategy. But there's other things like changing vendors, reengineering meters and stuff like that. From a top line perspective, there's been no particularly noteworthy impact in any of the short-cycle revenues. It's an area we continue to watch. But as you saw the year play out in 2021, it was fairly consistent to how we expected it to. So nothing material there. Second one, Linda, you want to?

顯然，提前訂購是該策略的重要組成部分。但還有其他事情，例如更換供應商、重新設計儀表等等。從收入的角度來看，任何短期收入都沒有特別值得注意的影響。這是我們繼續關注的一個領域。但如您所見，2021 年的情況與我們的預期相當一致。所以那裡沒有任何實質內容。第二個，琳達，你想要嗎？

Yes. I got the second one. You're right. That's most of what you'll end up seeing, Matthew, as far as separation-related costs, is $185 million that I broke out this year. You won't see us breaking out separation-related costs going forward because they're just -- they're going to be virtually nonexistent.

是的。我得到了第二個。你說得對。這就是你最終會看到的大部分情況，馬修，就與離職相關的成本而言，我今年公佈的費用為 1.85 億美元。你不會看到我們繼續細分與離職相關的成本，因為它們實際上將不存在。

All right. That's helpful. And then, I guess, just coming back to the point on political. Can you remind us does that tend to have a little bit of lift on the short-cycle business as we get into the back half of this year? Or is that, again, more of a nonevent?

好的。這很有幫助。然後，我想，回到政治議題上來。您能否提醒我們，當我們進入今年下半年時，這是否會對短週期業務產生一點提振？還是這又是一件無關緊要的事？

No. I mean this is baked into typically our revenue flow, Matthew. Every year, there's different kinds of events, whether it's sporting, political, they're basically nothing noteworthy there that's separate from what's been called out during the guidance.

不，我的意思是，這通常已融入我們的收入流中，馬修。每年都會有不同類型的活動，無論是體育活動還是政治活動，除了指導方針中提出的內容之外，基本上沒有什麼值得注意的事情。

And your next question comes from George Tong from Goldman Sachs.

你的下一個問題來自高盛的喬治唐。

You mentioned you'll complete all MRC actions by the middle of this year. Can you elaborate on what outstanding items remain for local and national ratings, and also discuss how your accreditation process for digital ratings is progressing?

您提到您將在今年年中完成所有 MRC 行動。您能否詳細說明地方和國家評級仍有哪些未完成的項目，並討論一下您的數位評級認證流程進度如何？

Yes. Thanks, George. I'll begin with digital. It is a complete audit of all components of the digital product. As you know, we rebuilt it from scratch. And so it's mobile. It's desktop. It's adding -- it's auditing all the components, viability, the CTV enhancements, identity. So it's pretty comprehensive. We expect the first set of comprehensive audits for digital to be in March, which is obviously in this week and the rest of the month. So we feel really good about the progress on that front.

是的。謝謝，喬治。我將從數字開始。它是對數位產品所有組件的完整審核。如您所知，我們從頭開始重建它。所以它是移動的。這是桌面。它正在添加中——它正在審核所有組件、可行性、CTV 增強功能、身份。所以它是相當全面的。我們預計第一輪全面的數位審核將在三月進行，顯然是在本周和本月剩餘時間。因此，我們對這方面的進展感到非常滿意。

As regards to television measurement, as we've laid out very transparently, we started publishing tracking against all of the accreditation items required. And look, this isn't just about accreditation. It's about raising the bar on quality more broadly. So we've got a series of projects that are beyond what would be called accreditation criteria. So our expectation is we get all of these projects, not just the execution, but even the audits done by midyear. And we're tracking really well to that and publishing to the industry where we stand on a fairly frequent basis. So we feel really good about how we have executed going into Q4 as wellas beginning of 2022.

至於電視測量，正如我們非常透明地闡述的那樣，我們開始發布針對所有所需認證項目的追蹤。看，這不僅僅是認證的問題。這是為了更廣泛地提高品質標準。因此，我們有一系列超出所謂認證標準的項目。因此，我們的期望是我們能在年中之前完成所有這些項目，不僅是執行，甚至是審計。我們對此進行了很好的跟踪，並經常向我們所處的行業發布資訊。因此，我們對進入第四季度以及 2022 年初的執行情況感到非常滿意。

George, your question leads to a second point around upfront, which was asked earlier. I do want to clarify something because you're right to go to the digital ratings. I think the thing that we're going to see different in the upfront this year is the digital players showing up. Google is out there, which is the biggest streaming platform, but that's sponsored. They're out there with a blog post, very clearly citing Nielsen ratings, intend to go forward with those. I mentioned on the call, Roku, being using the rating. I think it's really important when people are looking at the industry, they realize the industry is digital first, and so is Nielsen.

喬治，你的問題引出了前面提到的第二點。我確實想澄清一些事情，因為你查看數字評級是正確的。我認為今年我們將在前期看到不同的事情是數位播放器的出現。谷歌就在那裡，它是最大的串流媒體平台，但這是有贊助的。他們發表了一篇部落格文章，非常明確地引用了尼爾森的評級，並打算繼續推進這些評級。我在電話中提到，Roku 正在使用評級。我認為當人們關注這個行業時，這一點非常重要，他們意識到這個行業首先是數位化的，尼爾森也是如此。

And as we approach all of this, it is the belief that we'll accredit the thesis because I think we need to resource and trust and confidence and really respect the MRC process. Then right behind that, will be cross-media. But this upfront is going to be for the first time, I think, and upfront with a lot of commitments to the streaming side also, and those are all going forward with Nielsen.

當我們解決所有這些問題時，我們相信我們會認可這篇論文，因為我認為我們需要資源、信任和信心，並真正尊重 MRC 流程。緊隨其後的是跨媒體。但我認為，這種前期準備將是第一次，而且前期對串流媒體方面也做出了很多承諾，而這些都將與尼爾森一起推進。

Got it. That's helpful. Do you expect organic revenue growth to be back half weighted in 2022 despite easier comps in the first half of the year? Can you elaborate specifically on expectations for growth in the Audience Measurement business, including puts and takes that might impact growth in the first half?

知道了。這很有幫助。儘管上半年的業績比較容易，您預計 2022 年有機收入成長會回升到一半嗎？您能否具體詳細說明對受眾測量業務成長的預期，包括可能影響上半年成長的看跌期權和拿單？

Yes. So I can take that one, George. I think as we think about Audience Measurement, we are consistent with the way that we've signaled that in the past. And that for Audience Measurement, that we pretty much see it as mid single-digit is the way that we're thinking of it, low to mid, depending on any particular mix of renewals that play out. But you heard David talk about the strength of our renewals, and 100% have renewed. So we feel good about the overall low to mid, in line with what we put out there at Investor Day.

是的。所以我可以接受那個，喬治。我認為，當我們考慮受眾衡量時，我們與過去表示的方式是一致的。對於受眾衡量，我們幾乎將其視為中個位數，這就是我們思考它的方式，從低到中，取決於任何特定的續訂組合。但你聽到 David 談到我們續訂的力度，100% 都續訂了。因此，我們對整體中低端市場感覺良好，這與我們在投資者日發布的內容一致。

As far as the timing is concerned, we are investing in the business, as I previously mentioned. And the initiatives, as is oftentimes the case, have us investing in the first half, and then we see the benefit play out in the latter half of the year. And that's fairly consistent with the way you've seen the business play out over the past few years. And that's what you see in the numbers for this year. So nothing really beyond that to call out.

就時機而言，正如我之前提到的，我們正在投資該業務。正如通常的情況一樣，這些措施讓我們在上半年進行投資，然後我們看到效益在下半年發揮出來。這與您在過去幾年中看到的業務發展方式相當一致。這就是你在今年的數字中看到的。所以除此之外沒有什麼值得指出的。

Your next question comes from Toni Kaplan from Morgan Stanley.

您的下一個問題來自摩根士丹利的東尼卡普蘭。

Can you talk about what you're seeing with regard to labor inflation? And how much of an impact is included in the EBITDA guidance? And related, if you could talk about any changes or initiatives you've taken with regard to recruiting and retaining employees as hiring has been a little bit more challenging in the current environment?

能談談您對勞動力通膨的看法嗎？ EBITDA 指引包含了多少影響？與此相關的是，您是否可以談談您在招募和留住員工方面採取的任何變化或舉措，因為在當前環境下招募更具挑戰性？

Certainly. Listen, we have an extraordinary team. As I said on the call, we've got more data scientists than the next 5 contenders combined. They're in hot demand. And we make sure that we reward them. We've got an incredibly strong tech team, really great product leaders, and of course, good commercial leaders. We have to work to stay competitive. We are watching kind of people's competitive offers and what's going on in the market generally, and are investing in the value proposition for our people.

當然。聽著，我們有一支非凡的團隊。正如我在電話會議上所說，我們的資料科學家數量比接下來的 5 個競爭者的總和還要多。它們的需求量很大。我們確保獎勵他們。我們擁有一支非常強大的技術團隊，非常優秀的產品領導者，當然還有優秀的商業領導者。我們必須努力保持競爭力。我們正在關注人們的競爭性報價以及市場上的整體情況，並投資於我們員工的價值主張。

And that is reflected in the targets we gave, which is may be some constraint on margin expansion. But I think we've got a great proposition. And people really do like working here and are coming in. I think, of course, it's not all tough. There's also real investments in training. There's real investments in collaboration. People come here because they want to learn the future. I think people are very excited about the convergence of digital and linear, which no one else is talking like we are, and excited to learn that. Because I think it's really going to help their careers, hopefully at Nielsen for a long time. And even when they go elsewhere, our alumni do quite well and are in hot demand.

這反映在我們給出的目標中，這可能會限制利潤率的擴張。但我認為我們有一個很好的提議。人們真的很喜歡在這裡工作並且正在進來。在培訓方面也有真正的投資。在合作方面有真正的投資。人們來到這裡是因為他們想了解未來。我認為人們對數字和線性的融合感到非常興奮，沒有人像我們一樣談論這一點，並且很高興了解這一點。因為我認為這確實會對他們的職業生涯有所幫助，希望能在尼爾森工作很長一段時間。即使他們去了其他地方，我們的校友也表現得很好並且很受歡迎。

So those are all the things we're focused on. I would say it's job 1. We do have a -- something we call smart work, which is the way we work. We've given people a lot of flexibility to balance work from home with the office -- as the offices reopen. That's also, I think, been very well received. The burden, of course, is our managers, to make sure that we're including everybody, whether we see them in the office or we work with them remotely during the week. And so there's a lot of work helping our managers manage and take advantage of the flexibility that tech has enabled our people.

這些都是我們關注的重點。我想說，這就是工作 1。隨著辦公室重新開放，我們為人們提供了巨大的靈活性來平衡在家工作和辦公室工作。我認為這也很受歡迎。當然，責任在於我們的經理，以確保我們將每個人都包括在內，無論我們是在辦公室見到他們還是在一周內與他們遠端合作。因此，我們需要做大量工作來幫助我們的經理管理和利用科技為我們的員工帶來的靈活性。

Great. I wanted to also ask about international. You talked about the 7% growth in 2021. Can you just talk about where you're seeing the most traction there, whether it be by country or which types of solutions are getting the most uptake in international?

偉大的。我也想問一下國際的事。您談到了 2021 年 7% 的成長。

Yes. I would say, Toni, for international, it's a really good story in that it's diversified and distributed. So there's really nothing in particular that is driving that in a more pronounced way than others. There's -- in any given quarter, there could be some strings. But it's in all regions. It's in all market. And so nothing that really rises to the level to strike out from -- as being a real standout. But the better story is the diversification that we have across all of international.

是的。我想說，托尼，對於國際來說，這是一個非常好的故事，因為它是多元化和分散的。因此，確實沒有什麼特別的因素比其他因素更能顯著地推動這一趨勢。在任何特定季度，都可能存在一些問題。但它在所有地區都是如此。各個市場都有。因此，沒有什麼能真正達到脫穎而出的水平——成為真正的佼佼者。但更好的故事是我們在整個國際範圍內的多元化。

What I also want to add, because this confirms the thesis we laid out at Investor Day in the fall of -- or I guess, it was December 2020. It's happening that around the world that, basically, the agencies and the advertisers are demanding cross-media. And I cited some examples. But in Mexico, where they've out subsequent in the team measurement lab panel, which we've done, which is helping to build measurement. Australia has a big project called VAS.

我還想補充一點，因為這證實了我們在 2020 年秋天（或者我猜是 2020 年 12 月）投資者日上提出的論點。我舉了一些例子。但在墨西哥，他們隨後在團隊測量實驗室小組中進行了工作，我們已經完成了這項工作，這有助於建立測量。澳洲有一個大專案叫VAS。

So our talent has really stepped up to make sure they deliver cross-media, which they chose Nielsen is the only company that could do it. In a place like Thailand, again, working with ADTEB across both the buyers and the sellers to get them to cross-media. So there's a huge demand for this. And the digital capabilities of Nielsen really are unparalleled. It is the most valued digital currency out there. So even in places where there are other traditional jigs and measurement companies, they all need us on the digital side. So that's really helping embed the audience measurement part of Nielsen internationally. And it's a big part of why we're growing faster in international than we have in years, and we expect that to continue.

因此，我們的人才確實加強了確保他們提供跨媒體服務，他們選擇尼爾森是唯一能夠做到這一點的公司。在泰國這樣的地方，再次與 ADTEB 合作，幫助買家和賣家進行跨媒體合作。所以這方面的需求很大。尼爾森的數位能力確實是無與倫比的。它是目前最有價值的數位貨幣。因此，即使在有其他傳統夾具和測量公司的地方，他們也都需要我們在數位方面。因此，這確實有助於將尼爾森的受眾測量部分嵌入國際。這也是我們在國際市場上的成長速度比多年來更快的一個重要原因，我們預計這種情況將持續下去。

Your next question comes from Jeff Meuler from Baird.

您的下一個問題來自貝爾德 (Baird) 的傑夫·莫勒 (Jeff Meuler)。

I was hoping you could comment on, I guess, buyback execution plans or consideration. It's such a big headline figure, and I understand the guidance assumption of not including it. But just given the percentage of marketing cap and 1.5 years of free cash flow, like what are you planning in terms of time line for executing it? Or how aggressive you'd be? Or is it dependent upon M&A pipeline, conversion? Anything like that?

我想，我希望你能評論一下回購執行計劃或考慮因素。這是一個如此大的標題數字，我理解不包括它的指導假設。但只要考慮到行銷上限的百分比和 1.5 年的自由現金流，您在執行時間方面有何規劃？或者你會有多激進？還是取決於併購通路、轉換？有這樣的事嗎？

Yes. Jeff, it's Linda. I'll take that one. So there are a lot of variables, and we haven't provided any specific time line. But stepping back, the great news is that we were able to make so much progress this past year with regard to our leverage, where we do now have the flexibility to evaluate trade-offs, investing in the business, considering tuck-in M&A or executing on share repurchases, all of those while continuing the dividend. And so we're not going to signal exactly when we're going to be in the market. And there are always some limitations on the amount of trading you can do in a buyback program anyway.

是的。傑夫，這是琳達。我會接受那個。所以存在著許多變數，我們還沒有提供任何特定的時間軸。但退一步來說，好消息是，去年我們在槓桿方面取得了很大進展，我們現在可以靈活地評估權衡、投資業務、考慮進行併購或執行股票回購，所有這些都是在繼續派息的同時進行的。因此，我們不會準確地發出何時進入市場的訊號。無論如何，您在回購計劃中可以進行的交易量總是存在一些限制。

But suffice it to say that we think the shares are at very attractive levels currently. And we are, as you point out, going to continue to generate significant capital flexibility over time. So it just has us very well positioned. And we couldn't be more pleased that -- to know that the Board sees the long-term value in the company and did the authorization. So we will circle back in due course, but at this point in time, no specific time frame.

但只要說我們認為該股目前處於非常有吸引力的水平就足夠了。正如您所指出的，隨著時間的推移，我們將繼續產生顯著的資本彈性。所以它讓我們處於非常有利的位置。我們非常高興知道董事會看到了公司的長期價值並進行了授權。所以我們會在適當的時候回來，但目前還沒有具體的時間框架。

Okay. And then I guess this ties to your views on intrinsic versus market price and probably the way the market is assessing the terminal value. You gave us a lot of good points, David, on separating noise from reality, both operational and the financial markers. Just I guess a question on contract duration or length as you renew through the Nielsen ONE rollout. I know you've always had long-term contracts. But are they lengthening as clients embrace Nielsen ONE? Is there any sort of pause as they're going through the Nielsen ONE adoption process? Just any update on contract length?

好的。然後我想這與您對內在價格與市場價格的看法以及可能與市場評估終值的方式有關。大衛，你給了我們很多關於將噪音與現實（營運和財務指標）區分開來的好觀點。只是我猜想您在透過 Nielsen ONE 推出續約時會遇到有關合約期限或長度的問題。我知道你一直都有長期合約。但隨著客戶接受 Nielsen ONE，它們是否會延長？他們在執行 Nielsen ONE 採用流程時是否有任何停頓？只是合約期限有更新嗎？

Well, first of all, I reminded you in the script, I said 100% of our top 10 clients renewed in the last 3 years. And they all renewed with similar escalators and time frames as we've had historically. So no changes. What I also pointed out is that last year, our national clients, and some of them have been pretty vocal about us, but at the same time, they all grew with us faster than they were growing pre-pandemic because they are also moving to digital, and they need Nielsen. So everything is very much on tracking these same types of contracts.

嗯，首先，我在劇本中提醒過你，我說過我們的前 10 位客戶中有 100% 在過去 3 年裡續約了。它們都以與我們歷史上類似的自動扶梯和時間框架進行了更新。所以沒有改變。我還指出的是，去年，我們的全國客戶，其中一些對我們直言不諱，但與此同時，他們與我們一起成長的速度比大流行前的增長速度更快，因為他們也在轉向數位化，他們需要尼爾森。因此，一切都取決於追蹤這些相同類型的合約。

And certainly, what -- when people have an audience measurement contract with us, we would -- we write them so that it can roll through the Nielsen ONE method as those methods come out. It shouldn't be incremental for Nielsen ONE. It's just a better way to measure the audience to measure them all on one methodology. In terms of the length, what I also pointed out is that we've got a number of digital players who signed up with us. Those contracts tend to be a little longer.

當然，當人們與我們簽訂受眾測量合同時，我們會編寫這些合同，以便在尼爾森 ONE 方法出現時，它可以通過這些方法進行滾動。對於 Nielsen ONE 來說，它不應該是增量的。這只是一種更好的衡量受眾的方法，可以用一種方法來衡量所有受眾。就長度而言，我還指出的是，我們有很多數字玩家與我們簽約。這些合約往往會更長一些。

Those companies are quite confident in their future, the digital-first player. So I would say that marginally exceeding the average length. And I believe as all media companies settle into this new streaming-first world and they realize the value Nielsen provides and to really help those agencies meet their fiduciary responsibility, we'll be able to have longer discussion. So it hasn't gotten shorter. I would certainly like it to be longer going forward.

這些公司對自己的未來充滿信心，成為數位優先的參與者。所以我想說，稍微超過了平均長度。我相信，隨著所有媒體公司適應這個新的串流媒體優先世界，他們意識到尼爾森提供的價值，並真正幫助這些機構履行其信託責任，我們將能夠進行更長的討論。所以它並沒有變短。我當然希望它能持續更長的時間。

And your next question comes from Jason Bazinet from Citi.

您的下一個問題來自花旗銀行的 Jason Bazinet。

I had a quick question on free cash conversion. I think in your prepared remarks, you said hitting that 50% of EBITDA converting to free cash in '23 would be difficult because cash taxes were higher and CapEx would be higher, but the CapEx step-up was sort of temporary. I guess it sort of implies that the cash taxes -- the higher cash taxes will be permanent. Is there any way you could sort of frame what you think a reasonable free cash conversion will be longer term for the firm?

我有一個關於免費現金兌換的快速問題。我認為在您準備好的演講中，您說過要在23 年將50% 的EBITDA 轉換為自由現金會很困難，因為現金稅更高，資本支出也會更高，但資本支出的增加是暫時的。我想這有點意味著現金稅——更高的現金稅將是永久性的。您是否可以透過某種方式來建立您認為合理的自由現金轉換對公司而言將是長期的？

What I would say, Jason, is we haven't even hit the 1-year mark of having closed on the sale of the Connect business. And the profit mix of the Connect business versus the media portion of the business is very different. Connect having been a much more global business and Media being largely domestic but with really nice growth outside of the U.S. So in short, it's complicated. And certainly, during the course of 2021, there are a lot of dynamics in play with selling Connect and the tax treatment associated with that and how that impacted our ability to utilize tax credits during the course of the year. And so we are not giving a rate at this point in time.

Jason，我想說的是，我們甚至還沒有達到完成 Connect 業務出售的一年。 Connect 業務與媒體部分業務的利潤結構非常不同。 Connect 已成為更全球化的業務，而 Media 則主要在國內，但在美國以外的地區成長非常快。當然，在 2021 年期間，銷售 Connect 以及與之相關的稅收待遇以及這如何影響我們在這一年中利用稅收抵免的能力會發生很多變化。因此，我們目前不會給出利率。

The good news is EBITDA is higher, and that translates into higher cash taxes. But it really is based on where our profitability is in various jurisdictions and in the U.S., in various states. And all of that factors into what will impact our cash taxes. Our goal is still to get to the 50% cash conversion over time. And share repurchases may have some relevance to that because the interest expense would that -- to the extent it impacts the pacing of us continuing to delever would impact interest expense. Not huge amounts, but nevertheless, cash interest.

好消息是 EBITDA 更高，這意味著現金稅更高。但這實際上是基於我們在各個司法管轄區以及美國各州的獲利能力。所有這些因素都會影響我們的現金稅。我們的目標仍然是隨著時間的推移實現 50% 的現金轉換。股票回購可能與此有一定的相關性，因為利息支出會影響我們繼續去槓桿化的步伐，進而影響利息支出。雖然金額不大，但還是有現金利息。

And so there are a handful of dynamics that are in play. But at this point in time, not in a position to really be able to give a cash range, which is a unique concept anyway. We're comfortable though with the way that we've guided the effective tax rate in the 23% to 25% range. And I'll remind you that if you remove the noise out of the current year, our effective tax rate would have been 23.5%. So just an important data point, and we'll continue to be transparent on cash taxes on a go-forward basis.

因此，有一些因素在發揮作用。但目前，還無法真正給出現金範圍，無論如何，這是一個獨特的概念。不過，我們對將有效稅率控制在 23% 至 25% 範圍內的方式感到滿意。我要提醒您的是，如果剔除今年的噪音，我們的有效稅率將為 23.5%。這只是一個重要的數據點，我們將繼續在未來的基礎上保持現金稅的透明度。

We are out of time for today. I will turn the call back over to David Kenny for closing remarks.

我們今天沒時間了。我會將電話轉回給大衛肯尼 (David Kenny) 致閉幕詞。

Listen, I want to thank you all for joining the call this morning. Every day, we all get up here to power a better media future for all people. We are not distracted from that mission. And we're very confident in the path ahead. We're very excited and proud of the progress we've made. And now, we've got a lot more to do. So we look forward to updating you again in April.

聽著，我要感謝大家今天早上加入電話會議。每一天，我們都站在這裡，為所有人創造更美好的媒體未來。我們並沒有分心於這項使命。我們對未來的道路非常有信心。我們對所取得的進展感到非常興奮和自豪。現在，我們還有很多事情要做。因此，我們期待在四月再次為您提供最新消息。

This concludes today's conference call. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。您現在可以斷開連線。