• by Karlene Lukovitz , February 10, 2022

More U.S. consumers report streaming than watching cable and satellite TV — and more report paying greater attention to streamed ads than those on traditional pay TV, according to a new Harris Poll conducted for TransUnion released during IAB’s annual leadership conference.

At the same time, the research confirmed that audience fragmentation in the streaming environment continues to be a challenge for advertisers. (TransUnion is pitching a streaming data marketplace with identity solutions.)  

Seventy percent of Americans who watched TV between mid November and mid December 2021 said they had streamed TV or movies during that period, versus 56% saying they had watched cable/satellite. 

Among those under 35 who’d watched TV in the period, 86% said they’d streamed and just 36% said they’d done so on cable or satellite. 

In addition, 67% of all of those who watch both agreed that they’d rather stream. 

Asked about possible reasons for streaming versus watching traditional pay TV, large percentages of streamers preferred streaming over cable/satellite for finding something new to watch, watching favorite programs, “escaping and losing myself in a program,” relaxing/unwinding, and “really want[ing] to pay attention to a program.” Nearly two-thirds (62%) of those under 35 preferred streaming when they want to pay close attention to content. 

Traditional pay TV was still preferred for watching news (50% versus 33%), however.

Overall, 39% of viewers said they tend to choose cable/satellite for “low-engagement viewing” occasions, including when they want TV on in the background and were not really paying attention, compared to 34% saying the same about streaming. 

On the advertising front, 33% of viewers who use both modes said they pay more attention to ads on streaming TV, while 22% said they pay more attention to ads on cable/satellite TV.

Other good news for streaming advertisers (chart top of page): 40% said streaming TV has more engaging/interactive commercials versus 27% saying the same about traditional pay TV, and 39% said they are more likely to watch ads on streaming because they are engrossed by the content, versus 30% saying the same about cable/satellite. 

In addition, while past surveys have indicated that repetitive ad creative is a key source of annoyance for streaming consumers, this one found people were somewhat less likely to associate this with streaming than with cable/satellite. 

Among just those ages 18 to 54, 43% said they pay more attention to streaming ads (versus 23% saying cable/satellite), 59% said that streaming ads are more relevant to them, 43% claimed that they pay more attention to streamed ads (versus 23% saying that about cable/satellite). 

Regarding audience fragmentation, the survey found that 55% of TV streamers watched six or more streaming channels during the past month (from among 67 channels presented to them); 77% have two or more streaming-capable TVs in their homes; and 38% have more than one brand of smart TV (among eight brands presented).

Harris surveyed 2,043 Americans ages 18+, including 1,878 who reported that they watch TV between December 9 and December 13, 2021 online. Some questions were directed only to those who reported being streamers (1,489).