Adult SVOD viewers spend half their streaming TV time watching apps on smart TVs, up from 31% in 2015. This is 2.5 times the contribution of streaming media players, which is down from 27% in 2015 to 21% today, according to Aluma Insights’ latest report.
In the early days of connected TV, consumers used a variety of bridge devices to connect high-speed internet services to home televisions, including digital media adapters, game consoles, and Blu-ray players, among others. Over time, TV original equipment manufacturers incorporated this same “smart” functionality into mainstream televisions. As costs came down, smart TV penetration increased.
Nowadays, according to the report, 64% of broadband households in the United States have a smart TV in their living room, nearly all of which are connected directly to the internet. Furthermore, 39% have a smart TV in their primary bedroom, and 22% in a second bedroom.
“This is an example of a well-worn migratory pattern. The newest, most feature-laden television goes to the living room and the set it replaces moves to the primary bedroom, then to the second bedroom, and so on. As this happens, the use of bridge devices to watch streaming video in all rooms of the home is further diminished,” said Michael Greeson, veteran researcher and founder of Aluma Insights.
Another finding of Aluma’s latest SVOD research is that mobile devices and PCs account for 9% of streaming TV viewing, exceeding that of game consoles (6%, down from 26% in 2015). Notably, this matches OTT viewing on pay TV set-top boxes.
At the same time, the report noted that age plays a large role in how SVOD users partition their TV streaming. For example, smart TVs account for 53% of TV streaming among adults 45+, but only 39% among 18-24s. Game console’s contribution to TV streaming is greatest among 18-34s (15%), least so among 65+ (1%). Pay TV set-top box’s part is greatest among SVOD users 65+ (15%), but least so among 18-35s (3%). Lastly, PC and mobile TV connections account for 17% of TV streaming among 18-24s, least so among 45+ (6%).
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