Report from Comcast Advertising Reveals Just How Fast-Growing FAST Services Are

But a lot more information some of which is surprising recently emerged in Comcast Advertising39s recent report quotFree AdSupported Streaming TV Why More Advertisers and Consumers are Going FASTquot It specifically focuses on CTV services that fall into the FAST category free adsupported television FAST programming services which include XUMO Tubi and Pluto offer both ondemand and linear viewing options and they capture cordcutting consumersquotThis report was interesting in that it provided a full view of just how quickly FAST is growingquot said Travis Flood Director Customer Insights Effectv a business unit within Comcast Advertising quotAccording to the report FAST penetration among households has more than doubled yearoveryear And today six out of 10 households who have connected TVs are using FAST services either exclusively or in addition to other servicesquotThe report also shows that FAST services garner higher Net Promoter Scores NPS a metric that suggests viewers of the platform are satisfied and loyalFAST distinguishes itself from other types of video services such as subscription video on demand SVOD and advertisingbased video on demand AVOD because it doesn39t require a paid subscription or password and it offers both linear and ondemand content With FAST linear streaming channels are created using a specific technology that stitches VOD together to create linear viewabilityquotFor advertisers FAST provides a unique opportunity to reach cordcutters while they are scrolling channel surfing and discovering new content a prospect not possible through adfree services like Netflix or even from adsupported ondemand services like Cracklequot the report notesquotWhen creating our FAST report we worked with XUMO to better understand how consumers are using FAST services todayquot Flood explained The XUMO service is also owned by Comcast The report shows that there is considerable viewer overlap with other streaming services many of which are not adsupported Of XUMO viewers 77 subscribe to Netflix 80 subscribe to Hulu and 65 subscribe to Prime VideoWhile FAST content is available on all kinds of video devices the screen of choice is usually the largest in the house offering a leanback viewing experience not unlike linear TV Because of that bigscreen FAST viewers are prone to channel surfing In fact the report reveals that it39s not unusual for viewers to land on FAST services without realizing it and then spend time engrossed in the content This is especially true of cordcutters who don39t have a cable program guideThe report also analyzes viewer preferences by genre on the XUMO service quotCrime TV game shows and daytime TV are among the most popular genres on the service behind news and moviesquot Flood said quotThere is such a diverse mix of programming available on FAST services today so it is very useful to understand the type of content users are gravitating towardsquotFern Feistel Vice President Marketing ampamp Content Operations at XUMO noted that quotthe report shows an increasing appetite among viewers for seriesbased channels on FAST services that viewers can tune to lean back and bingequotThese seriesbased or themebased channels such as Baywatch or Fear Factor are resonating with audiences and represent one of the main differences between FAST and traditional TV offeringsquot she addedWhile measurement of FAST services is in the development stage the report indicates that generally speaking FAST audiences spend considerable time on these services about 104 minutes within a platform once they have entered They also tend to be Millennials a generation that values affordability accessibility and nostalgic experiences through technologyThese viewers are also open to advertising and don39t mind ads if the content is free and if the breaks are short 75 of respondents What39s more 69 of survey respondents said that they would consider replacing paid streaming services with adsupported streaming servicesThat may be an indication of how FAST could change the video dynamics moving forward What are some others quotIt39s hard to predict six months out let alone three years from nowquot Feistel said quotBut we anticipate continued growth in viewership because of the low barrier to entry and 39leanback39 viewing experiencequotShe expects that FAST will continue to gain momentum with advertisers quotespecially if FAST services continue to invest in ad technology to make their service more scalable and targetable for advertisersquotClick here to download your copy of quotFree AdSupported Streaming TV Why More Advertisers and Consumers are Going FASTquotClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet

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Report from Comcast Advertising Reveals Just How Fast-Growing FAST Services Are

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Charlene Weisler

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Report from Comcast Advertising Reveals Just How Fast-Growing FAST Services Are

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