Price hikes. Interruptions from unwanted commercials while streaming. Geo-restrictions and barriers to content distribution. Streaming services ignore users’ needs and want.
In recent months, the most popular and well-known streaming services have witnessed a considerable drop in the number of users they serve. It is over one million just for Netflix, and Disney+ is also in danger of losing subscribers.
Netflix, YouTube, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video currently hold the top four positions in viewership, marking the first-time streaming services have exceeded cable TVs in terms of the number of viewers.
Moreover, these services differ regionally. For instance, streaming platform in New Zealand are different than those available in the UK or the US.
The encouraging news for providers of streaming services is that consumers are supportive of the methods by which they deliver content.
This is especially true when consumers can cut costs by using free advertising-supported streaming television (FAST) or advertising-supported video-on-demand services (AVOD).
Streaming services are still having trouble attracting new users and keeping the ones they already have, despite the availability of free or low-cost material financed by advertisements.
Users are not only prone to easily changing their minds and becoming bored, but they also demand that they be able to readily and affordably watch whatever they want, whenever they want to watch it. However, this is only a small fraction of the overall difficulty that streaming providers face.
Adding a new subscription tier with lower prices won't solve the problem by itself. Streaming service providers need to re-evaluate additional factors influencing the watching experience, many of which are in front of their noses.
Three primary factors contribute to streaming services' difficulty in maintaining their customer bases: Let’s uncover them!
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1. Commercial Advertisements (Ads) are Annoying
According to a number of studies, which demonstrates the potential for streaming services; subscribers are more likely to watch an advertisement if they feel as though they will benefit from it,
Once streaming services begin tagging, tracking, and leveraging information to the fullest extent, they will be able to improve these interactions to create flawless advertising experiences.
The objective should be to integrate advertisements in a way that is not distracting to viewers while assuring advertisers that they are reaching their target demographics and realizing a return on investment (ROI) from their spending on advertising.
2. Content Libraries Typically Contain a Handful of Popular Titles
One thing that virtually all streaming services have in common is a tremendous library of available content. However, this only sometimes means that they are consuming all of it.
Streaming service providers frequently ignore titles that are not as well known or as popular since they are focused on delivering the most recent, best, and most popular content.
They are putting themselves at a disadvantage as a result of this since they are not indexing every title, so it may be a part of the recommendation process.
Serving the appropriate kind of content ought to take precedence over popularity as the primary concern here. Moreover, if you are a student then you can also avail the discount by following the guide on how to get student discount on Prime Video.
3. Perceiving Emotions is not a Stronger Point
It is still difficult for content producers to connect with the feelings and states of mind of their audience members in order to improve the discovery process.
Even if nobody has really done a good job so far of studying and tapping into these emotional qualities, there is little doubt that it is going to be one of the next developments that will differentiate platforms and attract users.
We are only beginning to see how things like FAST and AVOD content are having an influence on customers, helping to differentiate streaming services and contributing to the retention of users.
You can also use this guide to learn about what AVOD content is? and its contribution to the streaming industry.
The streaming provider may not yet have a perfect grasp of viewer behaviors or emotions just yet; however, if they take a step back, they will notice that there are other aspects within their control – specifically, the type, timing, and frequency of advertisements which can be improved with studies and experiments.
If a user enjoys watching a Marvel movie on Disney+, it makes perfect sense for an advertisement for the next film, “Wakanda Forever,” to flash on the screen.
However, because it would be distracting to include that advertisement in the middle of a scene, it needs to be timed so that it occurs in between scenes instead.
In addition, even if the advertisement is pertinent to my needs, that does not indicate that I want to view it a dozen times. To prevent viewers from becoming frustrated, there must be a limit on the number of times an advertisement can appear.
Final Words
In essence, streaming services need to undertake evaluations and research on the needs and desires of their consumers regarding the streaming content that users want to watch and enjoy at various times and occasions.
Users' watching experiences are seriously compromised by the introduction of advertisements amidst playing videos.
Users have access to a wide variety of streaming platforms, and the titles in the library play a significant role in determining which platform they select.