How much would U.S. consumers pay for their favorite TV channels? Between $1.52 and $1.54 apiece
TiVo yesterday released its Q3 2016 Video Trends Report, and with cord cutting and unbundling both hot topics, the company drilled down on which channels are most essential to consumers and how much they’d be willing to pay for the channels.
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TiVo surveyed 3,100 consumers and found that ABC, CBS, NBC, Discovery and History are the five most popular channels in the U.S. Still, respondents said that they’d only be willing to pay between $1.52 and $1.54 to gain access to each. When placed in skinny bundles offered by Sling TV and others these prices are within range, but they fall far below the prices offered by networks for standalone services.
Top Five Most-Popular Channels and Desired Price – U.S. Respondents
TiVo also asked respondents, “If Netflix or Hulu offered a free TV service requiring viewers to watch commercials, would the respondent consider using it?” 69.4 per cent answered yes. Among respondents not interested in a free service with commercials, 14.3 per cent said they would in fact be open to commercials if content is personalized to their interests and/or viewing preferences.
Looking more deeply into this, TiVo’s Data Science Team was interested in seeing whether there was a correlation between those interested in an à la carte pay-TV offering and those who would like a free streaming service with commercials offered by Netflix or Hulu. 78.0 per cent of respondents desire à la carte pay-TV, and among that population, 75.8 per cent said they would also use a free streaming service.
Perhaps more viewers will consume TV the way I do: a Sling TV subscription supplemented by Hulu, Netflix, and NBA League Pass subscriptions.