Providing Market Intelligence for 40 Years

In The News

OTT churn increases in US during pandemic

According to Parks Associates, an increasing number of US broadband households cancelled at least one OTT subscription in the early part of the year, with a significant number also utilising the free trials offered by streamers during the coronavirus pandemic.

More than two in five households have tried out an OTT service’s free trial during the crisis, with 8% trialling four or more.

Of households that signed up to a service during the pandemic, 49% subscribed to Disney+ and 27% subscribed to Apple TV+ – the two best performers.

The report also raises questions about whether subscribers will keep these services with shelter-in-place rules being relaxed, in spite of a growing number of COVID-19 cases in many states. It notes that maintaining subscribers may be difficult for platforms which rely on original programming – much of which will have been affected by delays to production.

Steve Nason, research director at Parks Associates, said: “We are seeing a record number of consumers experiment with new OTT services as a result of the COVID-19 crisis and the shifts in strategy in the industry.OTT services are offering extended free trials to build up engagement, and 8% of US broadband households report they have subscribed to at least one new OTT service since the COVID-19 crisis began.

“The industry is working on new hybrid content strategies as a result of production halts. Major players like AT&T for Warner Brothers and Comcast for Universal Studios are greatly concerned about the delays in content production on the launches of new services, like HBO Max and Peacock. Free trials will bring in new subscribers at the launch, and roughly seven in ten have subscribed to at least one OTT service they have trialed. OTT services need to be creative in building an engaging service, but during this time of heavy video consumption, OTT services have the opportunity like never before to win over new video consumers and retain them as long-term subscribers.”

From the article "OTT churn increases in US during pandemic" by Jonathan Easton.

Previously In The News

Plume, Parks Associates study sheds light on ISP customer churn

The research paired Plume's platform telemetry with a consumer survey compiled by Parks Associates, including insights mainly from US subscribers.  The full white paper is available from Parks Asso...

Roku’s Price Hikes Expose the AI Boom’s Toll on Everyday Gadgets

Roku commands roughly 28 percent of the U.S. connected TV platform market, according to Parks Associates data cited by both The Next Web and The Desk. More than 100 million households worldwide rely o...

Smart Home Integration: Dealers Face Big Challenges

According to fresh data from Parks Associates, a whopping 57% of dealers find this task either tough or impossibly tricky in 2026, climbing up from 44% in 2022. Clearly, as more American households lo...

Big cable companies lose subscribers in Q1 2026 but outpace Q1 2025: Report

Though they still are struggling, strategies big cable companies are using to stanch subscriber losses seem to be working, according to a new report from Parks Associates. Parks Associates report a...