82% of U.S. broadband households have at least one SVOD: Parks

The proliferation of subscription streaming services continues seemingly unabated as U.S. broadband household penetration now exceeds 80%.

That’s according to new data from Parks Associates, which published its latest research of 10,000 U.S. broadband households and found that 82% of them now have at least one OTT video service subscription, up from 76% in the first quarter 2020 and 70% in the first quarter of 2019.

"With OTT adoption so high, providers are exploring new strategies, including expanded IP and AI-powered enhancements, to stay competitive," said Steve Nason, research director at Parks Associates, in a statement.

As for the around 20% of U.S. broadband households which has thus far resisted so much as a Netflix subscription, Parks couldn’t speak to their rationale but did provide some demographic information for the group.

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Compared to OTT subscribers, those who currently don’t subscribe are:

  • Much older. More than three-quarters (77%) are age 55+.
  • Much less affluent. Nearly three-quarters (74%) have household incomes of less than $75,000
  • Much more likely to be retired. Half are retired.
  • Much less likely to have children in the home. 93% do not have any children under 18 in the home.

Among U.S. broadband households that do opt for subscription streaming video services, more and more are taking up multiple platforms to suit their viewing needs.

Symphony MediaAI’s Matt Smith, who’ll be speaking at Parks Associates’ Future of Video: OTT, Pay TV, and Digital Media event on Wednesday, June 9, said that service stacking is trending up, with 46% of U.S. broadband households subscribing to four or more OTT services. He warned, though, that it could soon result in increased churn.

"Forward-looking OTT providers are wondering when, not if, the tipping point will come…,” he said.