Ad tolerance among streaming audiences continues to grow
Ad tolerance among streaming audiences continues to grow
Costs for ad-free streaming have risen precipitously in recent years, and audiences are growing more accustomed to watching commercials.
The onset of 2025 means it’s time to start reviewing spending for the year. Entertainment budgets are almost always one of the first items to be trimmed, and ad-supported streaming plans are making that choice even easier by allowing viewers to switch to a less-expensive plan with commercials instead of simply canceling a given streaming service altogether. New data from Hub Research shows that ad tolerance is continuing to grow, especially among viewers of live TV programming.
Key Details:
- Hub found that 66% of viewers say they’d rather put up with ads if it means saving $4 to $5 per month.
- The same percentage say that ads during live TV are more tolerable than ads during on-demand programs.
- Viewers say earning rewards for watching ads would make them more likely to pay attention to them.
The study released by Hub shows that ad tolerance has grown markedly in the past few years. In 2021, 58% of viewers said they’d rather put up with ads if it meant saving $4 to $5 per month on a subscription. By December 2024, that number had risen to 66%.
Click on graphs to expand.
The willingness to stomach ads while watching TV is even higher among live TV viewers. Hub’s data shows that live streaming accounts for approximately 31% of all viewing time, and because live TV is structured for ad breaks more naturally, audiences are more tolerant of ads during this type of programming.
Among younger viewers, the willingness to watch ads is even more prevalent. Around 66% of all viewers say that ad breaks are more tolerable during live TV than they are for on-demand viewing, but that number jumps to 69% among respondents ages 16 to 34.
Eighty-five percent of respondents to Hub’s survey said they think of ads as a simple fact of life while watching live TV, and 83% say that ads give them a break during the program they’re watching. As a result, more viewers are likely to pay attention to ad breaks during a live TV viewing session.
Streamers should especially pay attention to the next chart, which shows which factors would make viewers pay more attention while watching ads. Half of respondents said that getting rewarded for watching ads would grab their attention more often, with shorter ad breaks and ad lengths accounting for the next two most popular responses.
Interactive ad formats, such as those introduced by Disney+ and Hulu in 2024, have only a marginal effect on customer attention. According to Hub, games and puzzles in ads would make only 31% of viewers pay more attention, and other interactive ad formats do no better at garnering more eyes.
“Over the past three years, it’s clear most viewers prefer watching ads if they can save on TV subscriptions. More recently, we’re seeing that even the most ad-intolerant consumers are deciding the trade-off of watching ads for lower costs is worthwhile,” said Mark Loughney, Hub Research Senior Consultant. “There is plenty of good news here for streaming services and their advertisers. Most consumers think the amount of advertising is reasonable, especially in live viewing. As streamers add more live content, especially sports, advertisers will have greater opportunities to reach more viewers who are paying full attention to their messages.”
Disney+
Disney+ is a video streaming service with over 13,000 series and films from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, The Muppets, and more. It is available in 61 countries and 21 languages. It is notable for its popular original series like “The Mandalorian,” “Ms. Marvel,” “Loki,” “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” and “Andor.”