Providing market intelligence for more than 35 years

In The News

Parks: 83% of U.S. Internet Households Subscribe to at Least One OTT Service

 
A solid majority — 83% — of U.S. internet households now subscribe to at least one OTT service, according to new consumer research from Parks Associates. Meanwhile, 45% still subscribe to a traditional linear pay-TV service.
 
The firm’s new white paper, “Engaging Next-Gen Video Viewers: Leveraging AI and ML,” developed in partnership with FPT Software, addresses the increased use of video services, content preferences, discovery challenges and the role of bundles.
 
“The most successful video services going forward will be dominated by innovative technologies, including AI [artificial intelligence] and ML [machine learning], that drive sustained high levels of engagement with consumers through advanced content moderation and curation,” Sarah Lee, research analyst at Parks Associates, said in a statement
 
AI and ML can create a personal experience by leveraging data to understand patterns and relationships at a very granular level, beyond recommendations that “standard” big-data-based systems, according to Parks.
 
“There is a vast range of AI and ML use cases in media and entertainment — companies are only starting to scratch the surface,” Ira Dworkin, managing director of communications, media and entertainment for FPT Software, said in a statement. “These can range from generating richer metadata that can be used to drive experiences to reducing time required for content preparation to driving deeper advertising engagement. Leveraging and extending the data that already exists for many M&E companies to build bespoke AI/ML models can help to drive new insights, ultimately reducing churn and improving subscriber loyalty.”
 
Parks Associates research finds that 30% of U.S. internet households are “service hoppers” or streaming video subscribers who frequently switch services and re-subscribe multiple times. Businesses that harness AI can develop more effective and efficient strategies to keep these viewers from “hopping,” according to Parks.
 
“By understanding the viewer on a deeper, personal level, businesses can deliver a more positive, individualized experience that drives acquisition, satisfaction, and retention,” Lee said in a statement. “AI and ML models can provide this understanding and identify factors that result in higher customer acquisition and long-term subscriptions.”
 
From the article, "Parks: 83% of U.S. Internet Households Subscribe to at Least One OTT Service," by Stephanie Prange.

Previously In The News

Latest U.S. Smartphone Market Numbers Show Apple In The Lead, But Samsung Is Catching Up

According to the latest U.S. smartphone market share numbers from Parks Associates, Apple is still well in the lead compared to competing manufacturers, holding a beefy 40% of the smartphone market. B...

You can tell Comcast what to do on its Xfinity TV voice remote

Voice’s resurgence seems counter-intuitive. The technology first boomed in the 1990s with voice prompters in customer call centers – not always a satisfying experience as the prompters many times rout...

Study: 32% of smart tag owners say they use them to track other people without them knowing

A new report from Parks Associates says that 32% of people who own smart tags say they use the device to track another person’s location without that person even knowing they’re being tracked. “The...

TV Antennas Make Comeback As Pay-TV Prices Soar

So says market-research and consulting firm Parks Associates that estimates that the percentage of U.S. households that watch TV via antennas rose to 15 percent in 2016 from 9 percent in 2013. The res...