Being a cord cutters means being smart about what you pay for when it comes to streaming services. That includes knowing when to join a streaming service and when to leave one.
Nearly half of all online video subscribers are savvy enough to hop between streaming services multiple times with a 12-month period, according to a study from Park Associates (sign-up required), which examined the shifting viewing patterns with consumers and the ad market opportunities.
It’s a sizable number considering most services bend over backwards to get you to stay with them over the longterm, either through a steady flow of high-quality content or an expansion of different pricing options, including cheaper ad-based tiers. But for cord cutters, switching between services and cherrypicking the times you want to be a subscriber to access your favorite shows — and only your favorite shows — is a reality with so many options in the market.
With the cost of, well, everything, going up, it pays to be discriminating when it comes to which services you subscribe to. Marvel fans, for instance, probably could’ve taken a break between Secret Invasion, which ended in July, and Loki, which premieres in October. There were likely a lot of Ted Lasso fans parking at Apple+ for a few weeks while the hit comedy ran through its third season in March.
Parks noted that ad revenue, and not subscriptions, will drive the next phase of streaming growth. That makes sense with the proliferation of free ad-supported services like Pluto TV, Tubi and the Roku Channel, with more platforms coming on line everyday.