Consumers have been “cord-cutting” for years, dropping cable subscriptions in favor of one or more streaming subscriptions. There’s not a lot of mystery behind it, according to the latest J.D. Power U.S. Television Service Provider Satisfaction Study.
The survey found that streaming customers are much more satisfied with their choice than cable or satellite TV customers. J.D. Power surveys assign industries a score on a 1,000-point scale. Overall satisfaction for live TV streamers is 625 compared with 524 among cable and satellite customers.
The biggest gap in satisfaction between live TV streaming and cable and satellite—140 points—is with the value for the price paid. The reported monthly average cost for live TV streaming is $75, while cable and satellite average $120.
“It is clear that price has been a main driver in satisfaction, however, satisfaction for streaming is higher than cable and satellite customers across all seven dimensions of the study,” said Carl Lepper, senior director of Technology, Media and Telecom Intelligence at J.D. Power.
“Live streaming has reorganized the industry and as it continues, cable and satellite providers have been working hard to remain competitive, including exploring new revenue models to compete with the cost pressure.”
While Netflix and Prime offer plenty of original programming, J.D. Power says traditional cable and satellite services face the stiffest competition from streaming services that offer some of the same programming the traditional services provide.
The most satisfying streamers
YouTube TV ranks highest in the live TV streaming segment for a second consecutive year, with a score of 651. Hulu + Live TV ranks second with a score of 635.
Among the cable providers, Spectrum ranks highest in the cable/satellite TV–national segment with a score of 530. Xfinity was close behind with a score of 529.
Verizon Fios ranks highest in the cable/satellite TV–east region for a third consecutive year, with a score of 570. DIRECTV ranks second with a score of 520.
Xfinity ranks highest in the cable/satellite TV–north central region with a score of 528. Spectrum ranks second.
Xfinity ranks highest in the cable/satellite TV–south region with a score of 570. COX Communications, with a score of 547, ranks second and Spectrum ranks third.
Spectrum ranks highest in the cable/satellite TV–west region with a score of 534. Xfinity, with a score of 517, ranks second and DISH ranks third.
Kathryn, of Raleigh, N.C., says she spends about $48 a month subscribing to six streaming channels instead of cable. When it comes to satisfaction, Kathryn’s complaint with Hulu is all about the commercials.
“Even their most expensive plan has commercials, Kathryn wrote in a ConsumerAffairs review. “It is so far behind Netflix. I have their expensive plan and never see a commercial. And they offer better movies & series and so much more than Hulu.”