The Power of Pause

 

It is important to pause. At least the six-year-old says so when he has to run and grab a snack. Unfortunately he isn't talk about a moment of pause; he is talking about pausing the television. The way we consume television and movies has dramatically changed in the last decade.

What has Changed?

In 2019 nearly 40 million Americans ditched their cable package for streaming. For many consumers, live television is a thing of the past. Our culture's need for on demand content continues to grow. Covid-19 lockdowns grew the popularity of streaming services, increasing viewership by over 32%. More videos are added to the services as consumers switch to streaming in order to "hook" them. 

5 benefits of using a streaming service:

1. Commercial free: Most services are commercial free or offer an upgraded option to ditch commercials. Hulu offers commercial free viewing of your favorite shows the day after it is broadcast.
2. Original series/movies: Services like Netflix, Hulu, and Prime Video release series or movies that are available only on their platform.
3. Parental controls: Multiple profiles are available on many services allowing parents to create a kids profile, keeping content age appropriate.
4. Binge-watching: Watch all episodes of a show at once rather than once a week. No DVR programming needed!
5. Less expensive: Compared to cable, streaming is less expensive. Consumers can pick and choose their services to fit within their budget.

It is worth a moment of pause to see how streaming continues to change how we consume media. The consumer is in control of what they watch, when they want to watch it. We connect with others over streamed content. Conversations have changed from "Did you catch [insert show] last night?" to "What are you watching?"