±±¾©Èü³µpk10

Electronic measuring usually shows that people listen to more radio stations - but for shorter periods than they remember to record in paper diaries.

Speech tends to fare better than music, which is why the first national GfK wristwatch panel threw up a huge 17.9 million regular listenership for Radio 4, nearly three million ahead of Radio 2. The conventional Rajar data puts Radio 4 on ten million and Radio 2 on 13.2 million.

A new instalment in the unfolding drama will come in September when GfK unveils its data for ten stations in the London market. Cue more plaudits for the BBC and LBC and more bad news for Capital and Virgin.

The big question now is what happens next and how are people, particularly media buyers, going to react?

The genie is out of the bottle. Like it or not, we now have two incompatible 'currencies' for buying, at least for national radio and TV in the UK.

The tricky position will be re-emphasised every month as GfK posts its latest monthly figures. In the short term probably very little will happen.

The inertia in the system will see to that. Buyers are slow to change their ways, as they are now showing with digital radio. So there is some time to play with. But two incompatible systems cannot easily co-exist for long.

The trouble is that both sides in this dispute are right. We should move to 'real-time' electronic measurement as soon as practically possible.

There is equal merit in Rajar's view that such devices have to be rigorously tested to find out what they pick up - and what they don't. At the moment, apparently, the wristwatches do not differentiate between analogue and digital simulcasts. Cost also will be an issue. Will wristwatch/pager systems ever be cheap enough for local as opposed to national ratings?

So far the debate has largely centred on radio. Yet the issues involving TV are potentially more explosive. Many buyers will find the ability to buy radio and TV off a common ratings system attractive. Early GfK research has produced some remarkable findings, such as data showing BBC Two has a greater weekly reach than ITV1. Reach is not the same as hours and we may find viewers lingered with BBC Two just long enough to realise that they didn't want to see a particular programme.

The dual ratings system is good news for Sky and other minority channels that have argued for years that they are consistently undervalued by BARB.

Sky Sports shows up particularly well because the wristwatches pick up viewing in pubs and clubs.

Whatever the motives of those involved, a new era began last week. And the sooner everyone comes to terms with it, the better.