Study: NFL Viewers Moving To Streaming Services And Apps

The market research team at Colling Media, a top-ranked national digital advertising and marketing agency, has conducted a nationwide survey to study the evolving adoption of streaming video services by viewers of NFL games.

Key findings include:

• For viewers of NFL games, migration away from cable and satellite continues at a brisk pace. Among survey respondents who watched a game during the NFL’s opening week, 58% said they watched at least one game via paid streaming services apps.
• NFL’s Sunday Ticket service has the largest portion of streaming/app viewers: 20% penetration among those who streamed during the first week of the 2019 NFL season. Other services with strong showings are Amazon Prime and Hulu with Live TV (both at 18%), Sling TV (15%), and NFL Game Pass (13%).
• 26% of respondents watched NFL games on at least two different streaming services or apps.

The full research report and accompanying data chart is available here: Streaming and Subscription Services Grab Majority of NFL Viewers

“Consumers have more options than ever when it comes to consuming entertainment, and this is especially true for sports and NFL live content,” says Brian Colling, CEO of Colling Media. “While consumers are embracing alternative ways of watching NFL games live, the challenge for advertisers is reaching this audience scattered across multiple screens and services/subscriptions. Consumption of live NFL games remains high. How fans watch NFL games is fragmenting, underscoring why brands should be incorporating over-the-top (OTT) programmatic advertising into the marketing mix.”