Apple, Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, HBO and the list continues. There has been an increasing number of users cutting the cord for pay-TV services and moving on to streaming services in recent years. Consumers are expected to spend $13 billion on video-streaming subscription services in 2018 – 39% more than in 2017, according to the Consumer Technology Association. People are now using streaming services more than cable subscriptions, with 61% of young adults primarily consuming content through over-the-top (OTT) streaming services.

Consumers today crave that unlimited on-demand content when they can watch wherever and whenever they want. These streaming services are also a lot more affordable and consumers are able to pay for a select amount of channels and programming.

Both the programming and the technology of the large traditional long-standing media companies are starting to suffer and fall behind on-demand by consumers. They are realizing that they need to significantly improve their content plus move into the streaming services field. Tech companies alone are expected to spend over $15 billion combined on content creation in 2018, with Netflix alone spending around $8 billion. The main reason why the traditional long-standing media companies are trying to gain scale is to be able to afford that type of content. This is becoming a pattern in which we are seeing several of the larger media companies making these acquisitions, such as AT&T recently acquiring Time Warner. Soon after this acquisition, AT&T already launched WatchTV, a streaming service offered free to some of their unlimited data customers. The need to become a modern media company and adapt to how consumers are consuming content is becoming a main priority for the players in the field.

Advertising on these streaming services is also becoming a focus for many brands and media companies. The data and targeting capabilities that these companies have, can play a huge role on how advertisers target consumers with the right commercials at the right time. With streaming video, there is a great opportunity to reach engaged audiences. According to a FreeWheel study OTT viewers complete 98% of video ads compared to ad completion rates on non-OTT devices. Because of this, streaming video viewers are likely to have higher brand awareness and brand favorability. Due to the rise of all of these streaming services and the ever-changing world in how users consume media, we should see a shift of advertising dollars move in this direction in years to come.