OTT Gets Chance to Add Subscribers Amid COVID

Sheltering-at-home spurred a record number of consumers to experiment with over-the-top video, reported Parks Associates Monday. The churn rate for OTT services grew to 41% in Q1 from 35% in Q1 2019. During the COVID-19 pandemic, more than two in five U.S. broadband households trialed an OTT service, and 8% of U.S. broadband households surveyed subscribed to at least one new OTT service. Stay-at-home orders helped newcomers Disney+ and Apple TV+ beef up their subscriber rosters in Q1, with 49% of new OTT subscribers joining Disney and 27% picking up Apple TV+, Parks said. A key question is whether subscribers will keep these service, said analyst Steve Nason. “A significant challenge, especially for services relying on original programming, is delivering new content since production on many series has halted.”