Survey: Ad-Supported Streaming Users Are Spending More Time Watching Their Favorite Free Streamer
Survey: Ad-Supported Streaming Users Are Spending More Time Watching Their Favorite Free Streamer
New data from Aluma Insights indicates people are watching free streaming services for longer periods, reflecting a surge in ad-free streaming prices.
As Disney’s next round of streaming price increases looms, it’s worth noting that ad-free streaming is getting more expensive just about everywhere. Ad-free plans have risen 25% in cost in the past year, and more increases are on the way, as Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery have confirmed customers can expect rates for their streamers Paramount+ and Max to rise in the near future. Netflix is also raising the price of its ad-free plans in coming months.
- Aluma report says that 40% of ad-supported streaming customers are watching their services more.
- Customers identify subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services as the top platform they watch less of.
- Three-quarters of all streaming video users are subscribed to a free streaming service like Tubi, Sling Freestream, or Pluto TV.
Any Port in a Storm
New data released by Aluma Insights shows that customers are reacting to ad-free streaming prices in a fairly predictable way. Aluma’s survey indicates that 40% of users who are watching an ad-free streaming service have increased their time spent on that service in the past year. Concurrently, two-thirds of those same viewers were watching other TV sources less as a result.
The news gets even worse for operators of SVOD services like Netflix, Disney+, and Prime Video. Among viewers who are spending more time watching free streamers, 32% say they’re watching less SVOD content as a direct result. This allows viewers to save money by potentially canceling their most expensive SVOD subscriptions and forces providers to go back to the drawing board in search of cheaper options or more exclusive content to lure those users back.
“While free TV streaming services are generally used as secondary or tertiary sources of content, they are putting a dent in the viewing of primary paid sources,” said Michael Greeson, founder and principal analyst at Aluma Insights. “Given how rapidly the retail prices of paid services are increasing, we expect not only will more viewers turn to free streaming services for TV content but they will spend more time watching them.”
Another recent survey found that 75% of audiences are using at least one free streaming service to supplement their TV viewing, so it’s fair to say that the 40% of users cited by Aluma as watching more free TV is a large contingent of viewers. Moreover, 46% of these same users say that they like free streaming services because content is easier to find on such platforms. Another recent study fielded by Variety shows that a vast majority of free streaming users think the platforms are well organized.
Free streaming is clearly here to stay, and its fans are increasingly loyal to platforms like The Roku Channel and Freevee. Such streaming platforms are gaining viewers every day, and those viewers are spending more time with their chosen service as ad-free streaming costs continue to rise.
Freevee
Freevee video streaming service was Amazon’s free, ad-supported streaming service offering a mix of movies, TV shows, live FAST channels, and original programming. Originally launched as IMDb TV before rebranding to Amazon Freevee in 2022, the service featured licensed library content alongside exclusives such as “Jury Duty,” “Bosch: Legacy,” and “Judy Justice.” Its lineup spanned drama, comedy, reality, true crime, and family programming, along with curated live channels covering news, sports highlights, and classic TV.