Google has forced UK television measurement providers Barb and Kantar Media to suspend their “landmark service” that compares viewership on its video portal YouTube with other TV channels and streamers.

The FT has reported that Google sent a legal ‘cease and desist’ letter to Kantar Media just months after it launched in July 2025, stopping them from accessing data that helped attribute viewing sessions to specific content creators, citing a breach of terms of service.

Barb and Kantar Media had wanted their initiative to expand measurement of YouTube content watched on TV sets. This helps compare YouTube channels with the independent data collected on linear TV and streamers using the same methodology.

Those close to the dispute told the FT that while Google did not agree that the service was representative of the platform’s viewership, the legal request related to how the service breached the terms of service around using its creator content.

The initial press release announcing the service showed that YouTube’s biggest channel for audiences viewing on TV sets was Peppa Pig. But even this only attracted 758,000 viewers during the week measured, or 1.2 per cent of all people aged over four who watched for at least three consecutive minutes. MrBeast (pictured) — owner of the the most subscribed channel on YouTube — attracted just 319,000 viewers during the week, or 0.5 per cent of the available audience.

The dispute comes at a time of tensions between the TV industry and tech platforms that are increasingly luring many viewers, especially among younger audiences.

Kantar Media confirmed the “measurement service is paused” but declined to comment further on “confidential client discussions”.

YouTube’s viewership in the UK is also measured through Ipsos/Iris, with advertising assessed with Nielsen, AudienceProject and ISBA’s Origin, a measurement tool for advertising reach.

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Categories: Articles, Broadcast, Policy, Regulation, Services

Tags: BARB, google, Kantar, nieslen, youtube