Providing Market Intelligence for 40 Years

In The News

Parks: 89% of U.S. Households Have a Streaming Video Subscription

Parks Associates research sees an uptick of subscription streaming services among U.S. households, led by streaming video, retail memberships, and streaming audio, while 20% of households have a gaming subscription, outpacing gym memberships.

Citing data from a new consumer study of 8,000 U.S. internet households, Parks found that 89% of households have a streaming video service, and 32% subscribe to a streaming audio service. One in five internet households subscribe to a gaming service, while 16% have a gym membership.

“The evolution of hardware to a service model and demand to drive engagement and loyalty for brands through apps are driving the rise of subscription services,” Jennifer Kent, VP of research for Parks Associates, said in a statement.

Kent said that Spotify’s premium subscriber adoption is as high as that of Warner Bros. Discovery’s Discovery+ platform, which she said is the ninth-biggest video subscription service.

While many subscription services see adoption drop-offs after age 45, Kent believes that households can absorb the high prices for gaming and fitness services, appearing to prioritize convenience over the cost of streaming services.

Categories that provide entertainment (music, gaming) and convenience (child/baby, meal service) fare particularly well in terms of customer loyalty, according to Parks. The Dallas-based company believes that internet and traditional pay-TV providers, which traditionally have subpar consumer satisfaction scores, can benefit from partnering with — or bundling in — streaming services that garner higher customer satisfaction and loyalty.

“Competitive pressure will force market challengers to forge stronger ties, [such as] Walmart+ and Paramount+,” Kent said. “Subscription bundlers should seek offerings that span entertainment, productivity, and convenience.”

From the article, "Parks: 89% of U.S. Households Have a Streaming Video Subscription" by Jennifer Kent

Previously In The News

Ridesharing Is Making It Harder Than Ever to Commit to a One-Car Relationship

Rising rideshare statistics offer plenty of fodder for utopian predictions of a car-free, community-focused future. But just because we’re using these services doesn’t mean we’re ready to give up on o...

Is Sharing Your Netflix Password Illegal?

In other words, it could be applied to the consensual sharing of a Facebook password. In the court’s ruling, the “owner” is not the user or the account-holder; it is the platform owner. And according...

Study: OTT Streaming Hours Grew by Over 100% Last Year

The company’s data also revealed that TV-connected streaming devices were the most popular for streaming OTT services. Most videos were consumed through devices such as Amazon Fire TV, Roku, and gamin...

The Best Wearable Fitness Tech We Saw At CES 2017

It’s one of the biggest arms races of the 21st century—literally. Once the preserve of hardcore fitness junkies, the activity tracker industry has exploded into the mainstream and is now set to surpas...