• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, October 6, 2020

Use of ad-supported streaming services continues to grow as consumers’ appetite for content remains unabated, even as their budgets for such entertainment hit their upper limits, a just-released study from VAB confirms. 

Nearly a quarter (21%) of U.S. adults in households that have viewed content on streaming services say they use AVOD services regularly, according to the online study, conducted by Lucid for VAB among 1,000 adults 18 and older between June 24 and 29. 

In comparison, 69% report watching subscription-based video services/SVODs regularly, and 10% report watching virtual MVPDs (vMVPDs) regularly. 

AVODs’ share is significant, given that Netflix and other SVODs have had more years to establish their content libraries and name recognition, notes the report on the study, which probed the current status of video viewing. 

The survey also confirmed that “stacking” of paid and ad-supported services is common: 27% of SVOD users also access AVODs, and 75% of AVOD users access SVODs. 

Among this survey’s respondents, 83% watch Netflix, 52% Amazon Prime Video, 38% Disney+, 26% Hulu, 14% Apple TV+ 13% HBO Max, 9% HBO Now, and 5% CBS All Access. 

Nearly half (46%) of AVOD users overall said they are watching more free AVOD content than paid content — including 42% of those ages 18 to 24 and 39% of all Hispanic adults. 

Nearly 40% of AVOD subscribers say they would like to see more free streaming video services available. 

Nearly six in 10 (59%) streaming service users said they won’t pay more than $20 a month for streaming subscriptions, indicating a “strong potential” for free AVOD services to grow, says VAB. 

More than half (53%) of AVOD viewers say they appreciate that ads make their streaming service less costly, while 35% say they “don’t mind” seeing ads in free streaming programming. 

Not surprisingly, quality content was cited as the most important factor when selecting a streaming service, whether it’s ad-supported or paid subscription. 

Nearly 60% of respondents said they enjoy the original content their services offer. 

Nearly three-quarters (72%) of AVOD users say they like the large selection of TV shows and movies their streaming content services offer, and 67% like having access to full content libraries of shows, both past and present. 

More than three-quarters of both AVOD (67%) and SVOD users (66%) agreed with the statement “I like having access to every show, past or present.” 

Fully 74% of younger adults (18 to 24), many of whom enjoy retro TV series, agreed with that statement, versus 63% of adults overall. 

“As streaming continues to grow, viewers are stacking AVOD services on top of their paid subscriptions—and with a larger AVOD audience, marketers have an opportunity to expand their brand’s reach by tapping into incremental customers,” sums up Danielle DeLauro, executive vice president at VAB.