As if anyone needed a reminder that the TV landscape continues to evolve, NBC announced this week that its forthcoming streaming service — named Peacock, after the network’s iconic logo — will be the home of a slew of content both new and old. The latter includes classic comedies like The Office and Parks and Recreation, adding NBC’s streamer that launches in April to the long list of services coming soon from Apple, Disney, and other big players.
One obvious consequence of the launch of these and other services: The inexorable growth in cord-cutting, as consumers abandon the cable TV industry in favor of streaming options that offer better pricing and convenience. And it’s with that in mind that two new surveys are out — from Roku and Consumer Reports — which both shine a new light on this unstoppable trend.
Cord-cutting is one of those things that might sound daunting to someone who’s never considered it before. Or maybe you feel like you just don’t have the time to sit down and figure out all the streaming options that are out there, how much they cost, and which ones you want. Nevertheless, consider this statistic: A full two-thirds of the respondents to Roku’s survey about cord-cutting acknowledged they wished they wouldn’t have waited and that they’d done it sooner.
Roku conducted its second annual study of the TV household landscape with participation from 7,000 US adults age 18 and over, along with participation from 12,000 US Roku account-holders age 18 and over. Among the other findings:
“Of those surveyed for the Roku study, 74% say streaming is more convenient than Pay TV services and 89% report that using a streaming device is very easy,” Roku notes. “Roku’s analysis of the Cord Cutting study shows that 82% of all Cord Cutters who participated in the study are extremely satisfied with their decision to cut the cord while 92% of Roku customers shared the same sentiment.”
The headline finding from the survey is that, according to Roku, some 60 million TV households are expected to access video exclusively through streaming sources within the next five years. Once that happens, “for the first time, streamers will surpass traditional Pay TV viewers.”
Consumer Reports, meanwhile, is out with some companion data today after having investigated the same trend. Spurred largely by high and increasing cable TV prices, its data shows that:
- 77% of consumers still subscribe to a traditional pay TV service
- 20% say they are very or extremely likely to drop it in the next year
- 62% cited rising rates as a reason
- 70% reported having at least one negative experience with their three-way bundled service
- Two-thirds said they tried to negotiate a better deal at some point. 76% succeeded in getting a discount or other perk.
