• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, September 13, 2016

Overall satisfaction with paid streaming video service is highest among customers who subscribe to a traditional cable/satellite service in addition to streaming video service (cord stackers,) according to the J.D. Power 2016 Streaming Video Satisfaction Study.

The study evaluates customer satisfaction among customers, who have used a subscription or transaction-based streaming video service within the past six months, by examining six key measures in order of importance.

• Performance and reliability
• Content
• Cost of service
• Ease of use
• Communication; and customer service

With these criteria, Netflix ranks highest among paid TV streaming video services, according to the report.

The report shows that although the number of customers who cut the cord on pay TV is growing, the majority of streaming video customers still purchase a paid TV service in addition to a streaming video service (cord stackers.)

• 60% of streaming customers are cord stackers
• 23% are cord shavers (those who still subscribe to TV but have downgraded their service package)
• 13% are cord cutters (those who have recently canceled TV service)
• 4% are cord nevers (those who have never subscribed to pay TV and only subscribe to streaming video service)

Some of the study’s key findings:

• Overall satisfaction is lowest among cord cutters (802), followed closely by cord nevers (807), while satisfaction is highest among cord stackers (826) and cord shavers (822). Satisfaction in all measures is lower among customers who do not have cable/satellite TV than among those who do, with an especially wide gap between the two segments in the content measure (40 points).
• 62% of customers use a streaming service to binge watch TV programming (watching multiple episodes in succession) Overall satisfaction is 35 points higher among those who binge watch vs. those who do not (834 vs. 799, respectively). As binge-watching sessions increase in duration, so does overall satisfaction: 823 among those whose most recent session lasted less than four hours; 841 among those whose session lasted 4-8 hours; and 858 among those whose session lasted 8 or more hours.
• 65% of customers view streaming content through their TV; 55% view content on a laptop/desktop computer; and 48% view content on a mobile device. 56% of viewers use multiple devices to watch streaming video.
• Original content viewership is higher among streaming-only subscribers. 54% of cord nevers and 49% of cord cutters view original content vs. 43% of cord shavers and 41% of cord stackers.

Kirk Parsons, J.D.Power senior director and technology, says “… the streaming video customer experience… (is) stratifying across the different subscriber segments… pay TV service still having a major effect… (and) part of the reason is demographics… “

Customers who only stream are younger than those who also have TV. 37% of customers who only stream are 18-34 years old, compared with 30% of those who also have TV, says the report. 52% of cord nevers are 18-34. And, streaming-only customers are less likely to use transaction-based streaming services, which perform higher in the content measure.”

The 2016 Streaming Video Satisfaction Study is based on responses from 3,928 customers, and was fielded in June-July 2016.

For additional information from J.D.Power, please visit here.