How often do you sit down for dinner, flick on Netflix for the comforting thrill of binge-watch and then stare blankly at the screen? Befuddled by the sheer diversity of content on offer, we are often rendered hapless, where we neither end up eating well or enjoying a good show. Now, research has backed this familiar feeling of disappointment.
In a new Accenture report titled ‘Streaming's Next Act’, seven in ten subscribers to multiple streaming services in India have expressed frustration with their viewing experiences, and 46 per cent of those surveyed indicate they spend more than six minutes searching for something to watch.
The ‘Streaming’s Next Act: Aggregators to play a starring role in making consumers happier’ report surveyed 6,000 consumers globally to understand their preferences, beliefs, and behaviours on their video content streaming services. In addition to the challenge of finding something to watch, consumers in India also think more than 60 per cent of the content they are paying for is not relevant to them. Furthermore, 81 per cent of those surveyed in India say they wish their profile from one service could easily be shared with another service so they can access better, more personalised content.
Saurabh Kumar Sahu, managing director and lead for communications, media and technology practice at Accenture in India, said, “As the video streaming segment has matured, consumers are increasingly finding the experience to be complicated, expensive and hard to use. Evolving consumer preferences and tough economics will create challenges for video streaming platforms. To win in this competitive space, the ecosystem needs a major reset, in addition to providing consumers greater control over their viewing experience.”
We often crib about how there is a monthly fixed cost set aside as subscription fee for multiple streaming services. Or conversely, we brag how we have access to four or five premier streaming sites, but in reality two of them are only languishing in neglect. There is now an interesting idea to better manage our preferences via aggregator streaming sites. Accenture’s research indicates that content aggregators can address this concern by unifying access across streaming services through application software, services and data-sharing agreements. Aggregators can also foster flexibility and personalisation for viewers by serving as a single platform with curated content that enables them to select exactly what they want to watch.
“Till now, most Indian OTT platforms have tried to differentiate through content, and the majority of their investments have gone into flagship titles. With changing viewing patterns, this needs to change and factor in scenarios like shared viewing. For the next phase of growth, these platforms need to focus on improving consumer experience and product features,” said Neeraj Sharma, managing director, communications, media and technology, Accenture in India.
The online survey of 6,000 consumers who are 18 or older, conducted between October and November, across 11 countries (Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, India, Japan, South Africa, Spain, the UK and the US), was designed to identify significant changes in the existing direct-to-consumer (D2C) media environment and offer suggestions to brands across the media spectrum to adapt their model to be more relevant.
