Changes to Nielsen's out-of-home measurements could result in biggest Super Bowl TV audience ever

The Super Bowl always becomes the most-watched TV event of the year, by far. This year's could end up being the most-watcher Super Bowl ever.

Even with possible Chiefs fatigue and a rematch of the game played only two years ago.

As noted by Drew Lerner of AwfulAnnouncing.com, the kicker comes from changes Nielsen recently has made when it comes to measuring out-of-home viewing.

Last month, Brian Steinberg of Variety.com explained that Nielsen's Big Data + Panel national audience measurement technology has become an official tool for measuring the total audience.

“The accreditation of Nielsen’s Big Data + Panel is a landmark moment for TV ratings, as it will forever change audience measurement,” Nielsen CEO Karthik Rao, said at the time in a statement. “No one else pairs a high quality, representative panel with a data set this large, pulling from smart TVs and set top boxes in more than 45 million homes. I believe Big Data + Panel gives the industry the most accurate measurement in the history of TV. We’re grateful to our clients for helping us innovate once again.”

Super Bowl LVIII between the 49ers and Chiefs generated a total average audience of 123.7 million. Even if the new technology triggers, say, a 10-percent bump to 136.7 million, there are more than 335 million people living in the United States.

Which brings me back to a question I pose every year at this time: What the hell are the 200 million other Americans doing?