Nearly half of Australians will view ads for streaming discounts: survey

Almost half of Australians (47%) say they would be willing to view advertising on their streaming services in exchange for a 30% discount on their subscription, according to the 10^th edition of Deloitte’s Media Consumer Survey, which investigates how Australian audiences across the generations are currently consuming all types of media.

Why it matters

Demand for subscription entertainment shows no sign of slowing amid lockdowns but, as content fragments across multiple existing services, managing and consuming those services is becoming complex. The race is on to solve audience experience, with pay TV providers, telcos and the digital giants seeking potential third-party aggregation solutions.

Key insights

• 56% of millennials and 54% of Gen Z are willing to expose themselves to commercial messages, compared to only 18% of those aged 66 or older.
• But as free-to-air viewing shifts from live television to Broadcast Video on Demand on devices, “willingness to engage with advertisements may be a challenge”.
  
• The report found that respondents were not enthusiastic about engaging with advertisements on smartphones (20%) or laptops (12%).
• The younger generations are said to be more responsive, which is likely due to their being digital natives, with Gen Z most likely to engage with ads on smartphones (40%), compared to laptops (20%).
• Advertising revenue will continue to be a critical revenue stream for both individual services and entertainment ecosystems, providing a valuable supplement to subscriptions.
• However, striking the right balance in the use of personal data and targeting the right demographics on the right devices will be critical.

Quote

“Advertisers must not forget the power of ad-avoidance in driving audiences towards lucrative subscription revenue; for some particularly intolerant audiences, an ad-free alternative to an advertising-heavy offering may be the best subscription acquisition tool” – Deloitte.

Sourced from Deloitte