Parks Associates says its latest OTT research finds 20% of US broadband households currently use an ad-supported OTT service and 15% use a "freemium" service, placing these offerings in a strong second place, behind OTT subscription services, among business models.
The research firm is featuring its new data, plus speaker Andrea Clarke-Hall from Tubi, Inc., and a live panel on the "Rise of Ad-based OTT Services" this week at its third annual Future of Video: OTT, Pay TV, and Digital Media event being held online.
"There is no clear market leader in the ad-supported and freemium OTT space, with Pluto TV, The Roku Channel, Tubi TV, Peacock, and Crackle all scoring relatively similar adoption rates," said Steve Nason, Research Director, Parks Associates. "The newest offering, NBCUniversal's Peacock, does have the reach, content, and profile to disrupt this area, which could further boost usage of ad-based and freemium OTT among US households."
Parks Associates research finds US broadband households in Q1 2020 report spending an average of $16 per month on OTT video service subscriptions, behind $89 per month on pay-TV services. The research finds that consumer spending has been shifting toward OTT services and subscriptions as more households cut or trim their pay-TV services.
"A prolonged economic contraction could drive households to reduce pay TV spending more, while also scrutinizing their OTT service stacks," Nason said. "Ad-based services will establish a large role within the today's OTT service space as consumers look for affordable entertainment options."
At the Future of Video event, Parks Associates highlights in-depth consumer and industry research on OTT services, the value of content, technology innovations, and best strategies for building successful video services. Event sponsors include Salesforce, Comcast Technology Solutions, ContentWise, Verizon Media, You.i TV, Amdocs Media, Penthera, and Verimatrix.
The virtual session "Rise of Ad-based OTT Services" examines the key factors that have driven the growth in ad-based services, how they fit within the today's OTT service space, and how they will evolve.
Featured executive speakers for the session include: