Survey: 63% of Americans Spend 6+ Minutes Trying to Find Something to Watch; Are Smart TV Partnerships Key?
A study from Comcast shows how viewers are finding new television content in the age of peak choice.
Times have changed since the days when TVs had actual channel dials. If you wanted something to watch, you flipped on your set and switched between the five or six channels your rabbit-ears antenna picked up, then settled on a title or turned it off. Now, viewers have thousands of programming choices between TV channels and on-demand streaming services, and a new survey from Comcast has details regarding just how difficult those choices have become.
Key Details:
- Comcast found that more than 60% of American audiences search for six minutes or more for a new show or movie.
- Seeing a promotional ad for a program increases its tune-in rate by 228%.
- Over 50% of Americans say they’ve watched a show or movie after finding it on their smart TV home screen.
The data from Comcast shows that streamers like Disney+, Max, and Hulu are just in time with plans to bundle their services together and create new streaming products that house more content. As it stands, only 28% of Americans say they have an easy time finding something new to watch, and 44% report having to scroll between multiple apps or services to find a new title.
All that scrolling adds up to a time-consuming search, in the end. Comcast’s data shows that 36% of Americans spend between six and 10 minutes trying to find a new title, the most commonly-given answer. Another 27% of viewers spend 11 minutes or more on the hunt for their next show or movie, meaning 63% of audiences take six minutes or longer to choose new programming.
So what can streaming providers do to help lead audiences to new content? In one sense, there’s little streamers can do to bring more customers to their shows and movies; Comcast’s numbers show that 63% of viewers pick a new title based on mood, which is a hard variable for streaming services to control. But other data within the Comcast report makes it plain that streaming executives must ensure they have good relationships with smart TV manufacturers if they want their content to be seen.
Get Smart
The survey from Comcast shows that streaming providers will want to grow as close as they can with smart-TV makers like Amazon, Samsung, and others. The data shows that smart TV home screens are highly effective at attracting viewers to specific shows before they even enter a provider’s app; 51% of American respondents to Comcast’s survey say they have watched a series or movie shown on TV home screens.
In December, the Amazon Fire TV user interface incorporated a new feature: its “Continue Watching” row. This row only worked with participating streaming services, so while it will show you your last-watched title on Max or Hulu, it doesn’t work with other streamers like Netflix. The data from Comcast shows that such content rows prominently placed on a smart TV home screen can effectively lead viewers to new titles, as well as ones they recently watched, so streamers should have an eye on ensuring content from their apps appears in these recommended tile lineups going forward.
Smart TV home screens are increasingly using video ads to show viewers new titles. Amazon Fire TV sets began auto-playing video ads in November 2023, and Roku recently served notice that it wanted to start embedding video ads on the home screens of their smart TVs and streaming devices.
This practice will help the streamers whose titles are advertised, according to Comcast. It observed a 228% rise in tune-in rate for titles among households that had been exposed to a promotional ad for that title, and streamers that pay to have their new shows and movies promoted in such a manner stand a much better chance of having viewers actually watch those titles.
Partnerships between smart TV manufacturers and streaming services have always been important, but Comcast’s data shows how crucial those relationships are in a saturated streaming market. Providers have to do whatever they can to get their content in front of viewers’ eyes or risk falling into obscurity, and strong relationships with equipment makers will allow streamers to ensure they get maximum exposure for their new shows and films.
Max
Max is a subscription video streaming service that gives access to the full HBO library, along with exclusive Max Originals. There are hubs for content from TLC, HGTV, Food Network, Discovery, TCM, Cartoon Network, Travel Channel, ID, and more. Watch hit series like “The Last of Us,” “House of the Dragon,” “Succession,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and more. Thanks to the B/R Sports add-on, users can watch NBA, MLB, NHL, March Madness, and NASCAR events.