The rise in popularity of standalone online TV services such as Sling TV and DirecTV Now is largely due to age demographics, according to new data from Leichtman Research Group.
The firm found that found that 18-44 year-olds accounted for 71% of respondents from an online survey of 6,715 households in the U.S. that had online TV services, which included Hulu with Live TV, YouTube TV, Charter Spectrum Choice, Fubo TV and PlayStation Vue. Overall, 16% of adults ages 18-44 currently have online TV service – compared to 6% of adults older than 45.
Among current online TV subs, 43% transitioned from a cable, satellite or telecom pay-TV service, while 17% switched from another online TV service, and 15% were non-subscribers to any type of pay-TV service.
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The report also found that among Madison Ave.’s coveted 18-34 demo, 42% had online TV, 26% had traditional pay-TV and 33% had no pay-TV service.
Nearly 75% of online TV subs claimed to be “very satisfied” with their service, but 20% said they are “very likely” to switch to another online TV service in the next six months.
Among online TV subs, 93% also have an SVOD service such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and/or Hulu, compared to 71% of traditional pay-TV subs, and 74% of non-subs.
Notably, 78% of online TV subs consume the product at home, compared to 82% of HBO Now subs and 88% of Netflix viewers.
“[Online TV] services were first introduced about four years ago, and the market for these lower-cost [monthly] services is still growing and evolving,” Bruce Leichtman, president and principal analyst for LRG, said in a statement. “Consumers continue to experiment with the various services, along with other traditional and streaming options, to find the best combinations of video content and cost.”