The average number of services among US and Canadian consumers increased only slightly since the second quarter of 2021, but still reflects the same general trend that has marked the last five years: consumers are utilizing a significant number of different video services, TiVo remarked in its latest Video Trends Report.
Specifically, US consumers had an average of ten video services each, while Canadians averaged only six per respondent. At the same time, respondents under the age of 40 had an average of 12 services a piece, while those over 40 averaged only six. When asked about the number of video sources they currently use, 7.5% of respondents feel they have too few services, while 20% feel they have too many.
Moreover, 85% of respondents indicated that they use at least one SVOD service, up 4% in the last six months. On average, consumers utilize 3.5 of these services, and pay an average of $42.03 per month for their SVOD subscriptions. At the same time, 66% of respondents indicated they would subscribe to an additional streaming service if a new one became available.
Meanwhile, 60% of respondents indicated they use at least one AVOD/FAST service, including 66% of US respondents and 39% of Canadian respondents. The average consumer uses 2.4 AVOD services. Although nearly three-quarters of these users (74%) noted watching AVOD services simply because they are free, 41% of respondents said they would be willing to pay for an ad-free version of their AVOD service, while 56% said they would rather use AVOD streaming services than subscribe to another paid service. Moreover, 54% of respondents wish their SVOD services offered a free, ad-supported option.
When it comes to pay TV, 74% of respondents subscribe to a provider, and those pay TV subscribers utilize 9.7 different video services. Only 2% of survey respondents reported canceling their pay TV service in the last six months, down considerably from the last TiVo survey (and despite the fact that +20% were planning to cut the cord in the last survey).
Furthermore, the report revealed that 26% of US pay TV subscribers are planning to cancel their pay TV service in the next six months. By contrast, only 17% of Canadian subscribers are planning to cut the cord during the same period. There has been a 3% increase in pay TV subscribers planning to cut the cord in the next six months.
Lastly, 19% of all respondents have already “cut the cord” and no longer subscribe to pay TV. Of these, 68% said that canceling their pay TV service makes them “feel more in control.” Of respondents who plan to cancel their pay TV service, 66% say they will use a vMVPD service to watch live TV instead. Others plan on using AVOD services (13%) or free broadcast TV from an antenna (10%) for their live TV needs. The remaining 11% either do not know what they will do for live TV or are not planning on watching live TV anymore.