Providing Market Intelligence for 40 Years

In The News

Study Finds Sports Is King Among Livestreamers

Events that are streamed live on the net are growing in popularity among internet households, especially live sports, according to a study released by Parks Associates.

The report, “Livestreaming: The Next Hot Video Market,” indicates that more than 40% of U.S. internet households have streamed content over the past three months. More than three out of five households (61%) were watching a streaming sports event.

The study also found that consumers who livestream spend about half their online video time watching live events.

“Traditionally, live sports programming has performed well,” observed Parks Contributing Analyst Eric Sorensen

However, “pre- and post-event programming does not perform nearly as well in terms of ratings as the actual event itself,” he told TechNewsWorld. “These facts apply to both linear television and live streaming platforms.”

Sorensen explained that live sports programming is migrating to online platforms as more rights become available.

“Numerous streaming providers continue to outbid one another for coveted sports media rights,” he said. “Sports consumers do not want to miss ‘water cooler’ moments with their favorite sports teams.”

Sorensen noted that Hulu with Live TV, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+ are key providers that now offer live streaming services that are challenging Netflix’s leadership position in the OTT ecosystem.

He maintained that offering live streaming content is not just a chance for Netflix to acquire new subscribers, but also to retain existing ones. “Sixty-four percent of Netflix subscribers currently live stream content on other services,” he explained. “By livestreaming, Netflix could retain longer engagement with its service.”

“This is particularly important in light of Netflix’s recent earnings call announcing their expectation that they will lose millions of subscribers in 2022,” he said. “There are several opportunities for a service like Netflix to provide egaming, esports, and red-carpet premiere events as livestreaming entertainment, in addition to sports and news.”

From the article, "Study Finds Sports Is King Among Livestreamers by John P. Mello Jr.

Previously In The News

YouTube TV Goes Live in Google’s Biggest Swipe at Comcast Yet

The name YouTube alone carries weight as a signifier of people’s viewing habits migrating online. And for networks taking part in YouTube TV’s launch, that could make coming aboard the service seem li...

Smart household devices may be your biggest security blindspot

New research from Parks Associates shows 41 percent of U.S. homes with wifi plan to purchase a smart appliance or other wifi-connected household device in the next 12 months. The international rese...

'Game of Thrones' is gone, and so are some HBO subscribers

“I think churn is a big challenge for an industry that was essentially designed to allow it, where viewers can switch easily between services and there’s very little barriers to entry,” said Brett Sap...

Is Roku Ready to Enter the Smart-Speaker Market?

New data from research firm Parks Associates shows Roku still commands an industry leading 37% of the streaming-device market. Meanwhile, Amazon.com has padded its lead over a fading Google, with 28%...