Majority of households now pay for streaming; cable/satellite subscriptions drop

Hopper and Eleven bond during 'Stranger Things 2." CREDIT: Netflix

Credit: Rodney Ho

Credit: Rodney Ho

Hopper and Eleven bond during 'Stranger Things 2." CREDIT: Netflix

Posted Tuesday, March 20, 2018 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog

For the first time, a majority of U.S. households subscribe to at least one streaming service in 2017 according to an annual Deloitte media consumption survey.

At 55 percent, the percentage has skyrocketed over the past decade from 10 percent in 2009. About 48 percent of consumers view streaming video weekly, up from 37 percent in 2016.

No surprise that the percentage of homes paying for a satellite or cable subscription continues to plummet, now down to 63 percent. It was nearly 90 percent at its peak in the late 2000s.

The survey found that the average American consumes a whopping 38 hours per week of video content. Of that, ,about 39 percent is streamed. Millennials, of course, are streaming maniacs. They watch an average of 34 hours a week of video, of which 65 percent is streaming. (That comes out to more than three hours of video streaming a day.)

"Consumers now enjoy unparalleled freedom in selecting media and entertainment options and their expectations are at an all-time high," said Kevin Westcott, vice chairman and U.S. media and entertainment leader for Deloitte. "The rapid growth of streaming services and high-quality original content has created a significant opportunity to monetize the on-demand environment in 2018."

Gen Xers are starting to behave more like the younger generation, going more for on-demand services instead of the other way around.

This is the 12th annual version of the Deloitte survey. The firm surveyed 2,088 consumers online in November 2017 for the latest report. Find more details here.

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Credit: Rodney Ho

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Credit: Rodney Ho