Are there too many streaming services? 56% of connected device users are overwhelmed

After Disney and Netflix both reported lower-than-expected subscribers to their streaming services recently, a new study lends credence to the theory that consumers may be becoming overwhelmed by the sheer number of streaming services available. The survey was conducted by Verizon Media and Publicis Media and looked at the trend of cord-cutting and cord stacking, the latter being defined as “subscribing to both pay TV and one or more streaming services.” Here’s what the study found :

68% of Americans use their smart TV’s built-in software to access streaming services.
50% rely on connected devices (such as an Apple TV or Fire TV) to access streaming services.
Consumers who use streaming services access 5 services on average.
Cord stackers (those who use streaming services and cable TV) use 7 streaming services on average.
67% of connected device users say it is difficult to decide what to watch because there is too much choice of content available.
56% say they are overwhelmed by the number of streaming services to choose from.
Of the respondents that accessed five or more streaming services, a whopping 80% said they wished there was a “universal search” feature that allowed them to find content across multiple streaming services.
Nearly half–48% of respondents say they are worried about how much money streaming services are costing them.
Unsurprisingly then, one in two streaming service consumers shares logins in order to keep costs down.
A majority of respondents–60% of them–said they wished more streaming services offered ad-supported subscription tiers.

The survey, called the 2021 CTV Growth Opportunity Report, was conducted between February 1-11, 2021 among over 3,000 nationally representative TV viewers.