According to an Ampere report published by MIP TV and MIPCOM, the fear among traditional platforms is that the SVOD-only group will never swing around to align with the pay-TV companies. The report reiterates the conventional wisdom that targeting this segment holds the key to the future of pay-TV.
“The interesting thing about SVOD services today is that they attract overwhelmingly one specific consumer segment, that of the content connoisseur,” the report noted. “Despite differences in the base of content connoisseurs across markets, almost half of all SVOD subscribers fall into this single consumer category.”
This segment is young, wealthy, highly engaged with both content and devices, well-connected and discerning — thus a key target group for pay TV providers looking to future-proof their customer base. However, they watch a little less TV than average and, when they do watch, they favour on-demand, online and catch-up TV. In part that’s because going out and socialising is an important part of their life.
Being content hungry, they also tend to take multiple paid-over-the-top (OTT) services and also are much more likely to take subscription music streaming services. “But perhaps the most important thing about content connoisseurs is that they are not subscription service-rejecters,” the report said. “They can be targeted with the right proposition.”