Participants will be asked to rate each Oscar nominated movie ad, as well as rate how likely they are to go see the movie. Graduate student Rohit Bhat feels, "MIMIEO will provide insight into measuring both the entertainment value of the ads, and the viewer's preference for going to see the movie".

On Oscar night, a panel of graduate students will analyze the data from the polls and publish a report on the findings.

The students previously conducted research during Super Bowl XLII and released a report called the EnMark Survey. The survey evaluated Super Bowl advertisements on two key dimensions: entertainment value and marketing value. The entertainment score reflected the degree to which viewers liked the advertisement. In contrast, the marketing score reflected the extent to which the ad influenced the viewers' perceptions of the advertised brand.

Key findings from the study revealed some advertisers, such as Pepsi with their Justin Timberlake ad, ranked high in entertainment score, but lower in marketing score. Alternatively, advertisers such as Coke with their Charlie Brown ad, ranked higher in marketing score, but lower in entertainment score. Graduate student Bryan Tabiadon indicated, "Viewers found the Pepsi ads to be entertaining, but when it came down to the ads ability to influence preference for a brand, more people preferred Coke!"

The survey methodology was created in collaboration with students and faculty from Northwestern University. The students are enrolled in the Master of Science in Information Technology program. Based in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science, courses are taught by tenured faculty from the McCormick School and the Kellogg School of Management.

Additional details regarding the research can be found on the student website http://www.mimieo.com/.