Concerned that your show is getting dodgy ratings, or is going up against a big sporting event, or even that its ratings are going to go down during reruns? Easy-peasy! Just misspell the name when you submit the schedule to the Nielsen folk, and it won't get aggregated with other episodes of that show.
In other words, if you know this week's episode of your struggling comedy "Oh You Kid!" is playing against the Superbowl, or is a rerun, or is going to pull low ratings for whatever reason, then you simply tell Nielsen that time slot is associated with "O You Kid" or "Oh You Kd" or "Oh You Kid?" and its database treats it as a completely different show, meaning the overall ratings for the show don't get pulled down and you can keep charging your advertisers full price for commercials.
While the WSJ article notes this about network news programs specifically, it also mentions that this happens with scripted shows, etc. And NBC spokesman noted it's a "standard industry practice."
TV networks said to hide bad ratings with typos – CNET
TV networks will intentionally misspell the names of shows when submitting episodes with poor viewership to Nielsen, reports The Wall Street Journal.
Well if I ever leave TiVo, there's clearly a job for me a Nielson. Because automatically mapping together the same show from different providers that don't agree on the name is a large part of what I do.
Speaking only for myself: This is actually a little misleading, and seems to be based on a misunderstanding about how TV ratings actually work.
Alas, I'm not sure how much I can really elaborate about it. Program names are "not my department", and also I am not qualified as a spokesman for my employer.
+Peter Bauck I would appreciate hearing more, but I understand your discretion.