According to Parks Associates, 6% of U.S. broadband households are highly likely to subscribe to an online pay TV service within the next 12 months, which would more than double the number subscribing today.
"In 2017, 14% of non-pay TV households were planning to subscribe to a service in the next 12 months, a notable increase from 2015 and 2016," said Brett Sappington, Parks' senior director of research. "Over 60% of these households are planning to subscribe to an online pay TV service, either standalone or as part of a service bundle, so consumers are showing a willingness to test alternate pay TV offerings."
"Currently, 78% of broadband households subscribe to a pay TV service, and 5% of pay TV households subscribe to an online pay TV service. These solutions include services such as Sling TV, DirecTV Now, PlayStation Vue, YouTube TV, Hulu with Live TV, or FuboTV," Sappington said. "While OTT gives subscribers the opportunity to pick and choose single services, it is easier for them to manage a single bundle. Desire for this convenience will continue to drive interest in online pay TV services, provided they hit the right price point and deliver the desired content channels."
Other Parks Associates data indicates:
- Use of an OTT service in a household correlates positively to high intent to upgrade broadband service.
- Approximately 33% of cord cutters would have stayed with their service provider if offered a Netflix-style service bundled with broadcast TV channels.
- 5% of U.S. broadband households have never subscribed to a pay TV service.
- 8% of U.S. broadband households have recently downgraded their pay TV service and supplement viewing with video on an Internet-connected device.