Deloitte: Consumers “Confused” By Video Streaming Oversupply

An irritated senior woman turns from the television she has been watching, holding the remote control.

With so many streaming options now available in Australia – and more to come later this year – viewers are now “overwhelmed” and “confused” by the surplus.

That’s the view of consultancy firm Deloitte, which has today released its eighth annual Media Consumer Survey.

The study found that with 12 video streaming options and eight music services – and the subsequent broad distribution of content – one service is no longer enough.

“Consumers are continuing to have to manage an increasingly complex content environment,” said Chang said Deloitte lead technology, media & telco (TMT) partner Kimberly Chang.

“Our survey found that 50 per cent of respondents with subscription-video-on-demand (SVOD) services said they need more than one service to access the video content they want, subscribing to an average of 1.5 paid video streaming services.

“We also found that 46 per cent of respondents find it hard to know what content is on what service, and 75 per cent want to be able to search for all content in one place.

“This puts the organisation or platform that can offer a true aggregation option in a very strong position to win over consumers and drive high user satisfaction.”

And while a singular service will usually retail around the $10-$20 per month mark, the cost of multiple services quickly adds up, Chang pointed out.

“As rights shift and new services launch, content is becoming even more dispersed, creating serious challenges in both experience and expense,” she said.

“Families who want to watch Disney for the kids, the latest seasons of Game of Thrones, premier league sports matches and ad-free music and podcasts could pay upwards of $70 a month – not far from the pay-TV prices of earlier days.”

Trust in advertising?

The study also examined consumer perspectives on data sharing and digital advertising.

Seventy-eight per cent of respondents said they don’t believe companies are taking the right steps to protect personal data, while 62 per cent believe they are entitled to ask a company to delete their data.

“Media companies have some work to do gaining the trust of their customers,” said Deloitte lead media partner Adam Power.

“When asked which top three companies respondents trust most with their data, pay TV (25 per cent), streaming services (20 per cent) and studios/networks (15 per cent) all fared poorly compared to financial institutions and telcos (70 per cent and 61 per cent respectively).”

And while whispers of Netflix making the possible switch to an ad-supported model fail to go away, the study showed customers largely value their ad-free content.

“When we look at advertising, it is pretty clear that when paying for an SVOD service, most consumers don’t want ads,” said Power.

“A staggering 89 per cent of subscribers value that their SVOD service comes without ads.

“However, more than half of Millennials said they would be willing to view ads if it reduced the cost of subscription by at least 25 per cent.”

“At the end of the day, good content will likely win audiences. If services nail the content offering, they will come out on top.”

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Deloitte Streaming Study