Nearly Nine in Ten U.S. Internet Homes Have a Streaming Video Subscription

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(Image credit: iStock)

New survey data from Parks Associates shows that subscription video services are nearly ubiquitous in U.S. homes, with 87% of US internet households having at least one OTT subscription service, and that password sharing is also widespread, with 40% of homes sharing login credentials. 

The data is for 2022 from Parks’ OTT Video Market Tracker online service, which followed 354 independent OTT services in the United States in 2022,

“Despite the dominance of subscription over-the-top (OTT) services, 44% of households continue to watch some form of pay TV, indicating that there is still interest in live/linear and ad-supported forms of content,” said Jennifer Kent, vice president of research at Parks Associates. “As consumers examine their finances out of fear of a recession, free streaming television continues to gain popularity. Savvy, ad-tolerant customers will view advertisements in return for cheaper solutions.”  

Other data points include: 

  • 40% of US internet households share or use shared credentials, up from 27% in 2019.
  • 63% of US internet households own a smart TV.
  • Nearly half of OTT subscribers hop between services multiple times over a 12-month period.
  • 48% of subscribers cited content or a specific program as the primary motivation to subscribe to a new service.  

(Image credit: Parks Associates)
George Winslow

George Winslow is the senior content producer for TV Tech. He has written about the television, media and technology industries for nearly 30 years for such publications as Broadcasting & Cable, Multichannel News and TV Tech. Over the years, he has edited a number of magazines, including Multichannel News International and World Screen, and moderated panels at such major industry events as NAB and MIP TV. He has published two books and dozens of encyclopedia articles on such subjects as the media, New York City history and economics.