Tag Archives: pay-TV

Pay-TV Customers are Defecting to Live Streaming vMVPD Services, But 26% Have Both

Posted on by

Many CDG clients offer video services and recent data from Leichtman Research Group sheds important light on video trends. Forty-four percent, or nearly half of consumers with a live streaming vMVPD pay-TV service (including the likes of Hulu + Live TV, Sling TV, YouTube TV or AT&T TV NOW), have switched from traditional cable, satellite or telco pay-TV service, according to the research firm.

The report also added that just over one quarter (26%) of consumers have both a streaming vMVPD service and a pay-TV subscription as well

Some 18% of consumers switched from another vMVPD service, while 12% were most recently non-subscribers to any type of pay-TV service, figures that were similar to the previous year.

Among the report’s other findings:

  • Overall, 18% of adults ages 18-44 currently have a vMVPD service – compared to 9% of ages 45 and above.  Ages 18-44 now account for 65% of adults in the U.S. that have a vMVPD pay-TV service.
  • More than three quarters (76%) of vMVPD subscribers are very satisfied with their service – compared to 69% in 2018.
  • 14% are very likely to switch from a vMVPD service in the next six months – compared to 27% in 2018
  • Just over half (54%) of vMVPD households have three or more TV sets
  • 42% that have both a vMVPD and a traditional pay-TV service cite having more choices or options as the reason for getting both, 15% cite serving multiple people or TVs in the household, 14% cite channels or content only available from one source, and 8% cite testing or trialing a service
  • Nearly all (95%) with a vMVPD service also have an SVOD service from Netflix, Amazon Prime, and/or Hulu – compared to 74% of traditional pay-TV subscribers, and 77% of non-subscribers in TV households
  • Nearly eight in 10 (79%) of all households have at least one SVOD or direct-to-consumer streaming video service, and 44% have three or more of these services

“More than ever, consumers are exploring the trade-offs between traditional and vMVPD pay-TV services—along with an increasing number of streaming options—to find the combination of content and cost that best meets their needs,” said Bruce Leichtman, president and principal analyst for Leichtman Research Group, Inc., in a prepared statement. “Younger adults and those with more people and TVs in the household have thus far proven to be most attracted to the lower-cost and lower-channel vMVPD options.”

Research Confirms Cord Cutting is Taking a Toll

Posted on by

We’ve all heard about the cord cutting trend, where consumers are disconnecting pay-TV service in favor of OTT video services. This has implications for CDG clients, both for those who offer traditional pay-TV services, and for those that do not. Some recent research reveals more details about this trend.

Three-quarters of U.S. television households now have pay TV service, but the percentage is continuing to decline, according to Leichtman Research Group, Inc. (LRG).

The percentage of TV households that subscribe to a live pay-TV (cable, satellite, Telco, or Internet-delivered) service is down from 84% in 2014, 87% in 2009, and 81% in 2004, though the amount spent for service has risen 6% since 2016, to a total of $109.60 per month.

According to LRG, mean spending on pay-TV across all households, including non-subscribers, is about $80 per month, slightly less than the 2015 figure.

Among the report’s other findings:

  • Six-in-10 pay-TV subscribers have a bundle of services from a provider – compared to 67% in 2014
  • More than four-fifths (83%) of adults ages 45+ have a pay-TV service – compared to 64% of ages 18-44
  • Nearly nine-in-10 (87%) of households with three or more TVs have a pay-TV service – compared to 75% with two TVs, and 52% with one TV.
  • 54% of TV households have both a pay-TV service and an SVOD service, 21% only have a pay-TV service, 20% only have an SVOD service, and about 5% have neither pay-TV nor SVOD
  • 47% of all TV sets in use have a pay-TV providers’ set-top box – marking the first year since 2010 that set-tops have been connected to less than half of all TVs
  • 27% of TV households have an over-the-air TV antenna – including 53% among pay-TV non-subscribers

 “Three-quarters of households that use a TV currently subscribe to a pay-TV service.  This is similar to the total receiving an SVOD service,” said Bruce Leichtman, Leichtman Research Group, Inc president and principal analyst, in a prepared statement. “With more options for watching live and on-Demand video, consumers are increasingly choosing to cobble together the services that meet the viewing and economic needs of their household.”

Video Entertainment Spending Declining

Posted on by

Parks: Consumers are Spending Less on Video Entertainment Outside of Pay-TV

Average monthly expenditure on video entertainment outside of a pay-TV subscription has dropped from $29 two years ago to $23 in the last half of 2017 for U.S. broadband households, according to a new video entertainment spending report from Parks Associates. Continue reading →