Today, Tubi and The Harris Poll released “The Stream 2025: Audience Insights Shaping Streaming” report. The report outlines streaming behaviors of viewers, with a focus on Gen Z.
The survey was conducted online from October 21, 2024 to November 1, 2024 among 2,502 18+ adults in the US who stream content for at least 1 hour a week. While the report focuses on Gen Z audiences, there are some themes that seem to be common among all ages.
Streaming Ads
The report showed that viewers are willing to put up with ads while watching TV and movies, but only if they aren’t paying. 79% of consumers feel that if they’re paying for a streaming service, they expect no ads at all. 81% say that watching ads is a fair trade-off for access to free content on streaming on services like Tubi.
That said, audiences are paying attention to ads. 59% of viewers say they’d consider taking action after seeing interesting ads while streaming. The problem is that those surveyed felt that most ads aren’t interesting enough to take that next step. 73% of Gen Z viewers say, “The ads I see on streaming seem misaligned with my personal preferences.” For advertising to be effective, streamers might need to take a closer look at which ads are being shown during which shows and movies and to which audiences. Otherwise, they’re just an annoyance. 46% of those surveyed say ads significantly disrupt their streaming experience.
Budget Matters
The report shows that viewers are spending around $129 per month on streaming services and paid TV subscriptions. Over half of respondents (56%) monitor streaming services carefully so as to not overspend.
We all have a limit when it comes to our entertainment budget. 76% of Gen Z viewers say they have/would end their streaming subscription over increased price. With prices going up for everything, including streaming services, many cord cutters are looking to free services like Tubi to give them on-demand libraries, curated 24/7 channels, and even original content to stay entertained.
What’s Old is New Again
Many of us love using streaming services to watch our favorite shows from when we were younger, including classic movies and TV shows that were hard to find before the growth of streaming. Gen Z is now finding that content too. The study shows that 66% of viewers are enjoying discovering content that was originally released 10+ years ago.
While we’re always hearing about new releases, 87% of Gen Z say that streaming services should show them older content that they’ve never seen before, in addition to those new releases. Along with discovering older shows that they’ve never seen, Gen Z wants to use the TV they grew up watching with family as a way to reconnect. About half of those surveyed say they connect over shows they used to watch together or shows one generation watched but another hasn’t seen yet.