Media Exec: FAST Will Be ‘Bigger than Broadcast and Cable Combined’ in Two Years; Is That Possible?
It’s hard to deny how prolific ad-supported streaming has become. Seventy-four percent of adults in the United States are now in favor of ads or ad-tolerant while streaming, according to TiVo VP Briana Larsen—as reported by Media Play— and 75% of consumers in the U.S. think of ad-supported streaming as a practical alternative to cable.
Some media executives think that free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) is about to take off even more. Speaking at this year’s EnTech Fest, Field Garthwaite — who co-founded the video hosting platform Iris.TV — offered his prediction as to the ceiling of the FAST industry in the near future.
“Over the next two years, FAST will be bigger than broadcast and cable combined,” he said.
At first blush, that seems like a fairly big prediction to make. A survey from February found that 77% of U.S. adults still use broadcast or cable TV, while ad-supported streaming — including FAST services — was watched by just 48% of the same respondent pool. That’s a pretty sizable gap to close in two years, but it might not be as insurmountable as it seems.
It might be the very nature of FAST viewing may keep Garthwaite’s prediction from being too farfetched. FAST channels offer a similar style of viewing to traditional TV, in that users don’t have to pick and choose what’s coming on next when they finish a show or movie. The programming schedule is already set, viewers just have to sit back and enjoy it.
Most services that offer FAST channels have also incorporated the grid-style interface that has become so ubiquitous thanks to pay TV. This allows users to see multiple channel options at a glance, and more easily find a particular channel if one had certain content in mind when they turned on their TV. These similarities between traditional TV and FAST services will allow users to make the transition from one to another seamlessly.
Live sports and local news are two of the most important pillars propping up linear TV these days, but customers are more frequently turning to other sources for those items. Local news services such as Local Now, LocalBTV, and others are free to access, and they seemingly add new channels in new markets every month. One DISH executive recently called carrying local affiliates a “tax” because people who wanted to watch local news via those affiliates have already cut the cord and left pay TV.
Live sports are also more frequently watched on platforms other than broadcast or cable these days. Subscription video services like Paramount+, Peacock, Apple TV+, ESPN+, and others now offer livestreamed games from major sports leagues like the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB. Meanwhile, pay TV has lost so many customers that regional sports networks like those from Bally Sports no longer have enough viewers paying into the system to keep themselves out of bankruptcy court.
It’s true that FAST channels are unlikely to get many live sports games any time soon, if for no other reason than the expense of picking up sports broadcast rights. But it’s also true that users are starting to think more frequently of other sources as their go-to for live sports besides broadcast and pay TV.
All of these factors mean it’s absolutely possible for FAST to overtake cable and broadcast in the next two years. Users will find their FAST experience very similar to what they’re used to with traditional TV, and the main factors keeping linear TV providers alive are no longer the unshakable foundations they used to be.