Survey: 56% of Sports Fans Say Streaming Games Provides Better Experience than Traditional TV
Survey: 56% of Sports Fans Say Streaming Games Provides Better Experience than Traditional TV
The problems facing sports leagues and media providers, as they try to determine how best to offer live events on streaming, are numerous. The biggest issue is that sports rights are expensive, and even the biggest streamers don’t have the same reach or advertising revenues that pay TV did in its heyday.
A new survey from the data and research company Deloitte offers some insight that could be useful for streaming services that are in the sports streaming game already like Peacock and ESPN+, as well as those like Netflix and Roku who are just starting to think about pursuing live sports.
The good news for providers is that sports fandom continues to remain consistent across essentially every age demographic. Fans are committed to sports, and willing to spend money to access them. Over the past three years, 89% of sports fans say their fandom has either increased or stayed the same.
The first lesson that streamers can take from Deloitte’s data is that even if they don’t have live events, having sports programming of some kind is still beneficial. In total 71% of sports fans say live events are still their favorite way to consume sports programming, but this number drops to 58% among Millennials and Gen Zers. Younger viewers still like live sports, but they’re also interested in other types of sports programming.
The good news for streamers that already offer sports is that they’ve created a user experience that customers enjoy. In total, 56% of sports fans say they have a better viewing experience watching a live sports event on a streaming service than on broadcast TV. This holds true for more than 50% of viewers across every age demographic except for Baby Boomers. Additionally, 52% of respondents said streaming sports offered a more interactive experience.
Streamers would do well to lean into the interactivity afforded by the streaming format. Over a third (35%) of sports fans want real-time stats and analytics, and 34% want to access alternate camera angles, features which are both available on streams of “Thursday Night Football” on Prime Video. Users also want to use digital watch parties to see games live with family and friends. Alternative broadcasts like the “Kayrod” presentation of “Sunday Night Baseball” are also much easier to switch between on streaming platforms than on broadcast TV.
The biggest issue streamers need to overcome when it comes to sports is fragmentation. Nearly half of fans say they miss games they want to see because they don’t have access to the streaming service the game is on, and 44% say they have to subscribe to too many services to watch their favorites. A majority (59%) say they’d pay extra to watch all of their sports in a single place.
That’s especially good news for ESPN and Disney. Disney is reportedly working hard behind the scenes to start building a streaming-only version of the full ESPN family of cable channels. Such a service would have to cost a minimum of $30 per month, and will likely range much higher considering the sheer volume of live sports rights held by ESPN. But fans are apparently willing to pay, if it means they can cut down on the number of apps they have to use to stream sports.
Every league will have to determine for itself how best to utilize streaming to reach fans. NASCAR finds itself in a position where it has to rethink its streaming plans, but other leagues like Major League Soccer have shifted all of their games to a primarily-streaming format. Streamers have to continue differentiating themselves from linear TV, but users are enjoying the experience of watching sports on streaming.
ESPN Select
ESPN Select is a streaming service that replaced ESPN+ and provides access to live NHL, MLB, and MLS games, PGA Tour Golf, international sports events, ESPN original programming, and a complete archive of “30 for 30.” Find out our review of the service and how to start streaming ESPN Select.