The history of TNS as a market research company began in 1946 with the establishment of National Family Opinion (NFO) in the United States.

[2] Since then, various mergers and acquisitions involving large companies from the US, Europe, and Asia Pacific eventually became the Taylor Nelson Sofres group.

[3][2] In 2006, a class action lawsuit was filed against TNS alleging that it failed to disclose major financial information in a registration statement associated with the company's secondary offering.

[4] The TNS Group continues to grow, mainly by acquiring small research companies to strengthen its position in markets in which it already has a presence.

For example, in December 2007, TNS acquired Landis Strategy & Innovation in the United States, a specialist research-based consultancy.

TNS was formerly a joint venture partner with the NPD Group and the IBOPE Group in this continuous consumer panel business serving Latin America operating in 15 countries in Latin America, and covering 96% of the region’s GDP, providing local and international clients with access to a household research panel across the packaged groceries, toiletries and cosmetics, fresh foods and textile retail markets.

GfK sought without success to find backing for a rival offer, leaving WPP’s hostile bid as the only one on the table.

[15] TNS is structured around specific areas of marketing expertise: Brand & Communication; Innovation & Product Development; Retail & Shopper; Customer Experience; Employee Engagement; Qualitative; Automotive; and Political & Social.