60% of Households Using FAST Services, Says Comcast

Household penetration of free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) services has doubled in the past year, Comcast Advertising said Thursday. Six in 10 households with connected TVs are using FAST services exclusively or in addition to other services "without the costs or logins required for linear TV or paid streaming," it emailed, saying FAST gives consumers streaming video with “linear-style channels” that encourage a lean-back experience and content discovery “that mimics traditional TV viewing." Comcast said the average Xumo user spends about 104 minutes within the Comcast-owned platform once she has entered. Many consumers may be landing on FAST channels without realizing it, since many are programmed directly into the channel guide by TV manufacturers, Comcast said. Some 70% of Xumo users are cord cutters, using the service as a complement to subscription VOD services, the company said. Comcast Advertising President James Rooke called FAST services a “valuable complement to traditional TV and other [advertising-based] VOD streaming options as part of a holistic multi-screen media plan.”