Barb is a privately owned company based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1981, and with an estimated 30 employees, the company functions as the central body responsible for delivering the UK’s television audience ratings. Originally established by major broadcasters and pay TV operators in the UK, Barb's primary output provides data that advertisers, agencies, and broadcasters utilize to support the planning and buying of advertising campaigns and to assess their brand and sales outcomes.
On September 2, 2026, Barb released data from its Establishment Survey showing that 20.7 million UK homes, or 69.7%, had access to a subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service in Q2 2026, a fractional decrease from 20.8 million UK homes in Q1 2026. The data also revealed that Disney+ added 1.1 million UK homes during Q2 2026. Previously, on July 30, 2026, Barb appointed Jen McLevey as its new Head of Strategic Developments, a newly created role. McLevey will oversee the delivery of the organization’s major strategic and operational projects, acting as a key link between Barb’s stakeholders and research contractors. She joined Barb from TRP Research, where she spent 11 years and most recently served as Associate Director, managing complex research projects including the development of metadata and monitoring service TRP Helix.
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