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By Jon Lafayette ( Broadcasting & Cable )
Source: www.nexttv.com, October 2023

68% of that generation already have a service that shows commercials

With the streaming TV business looking to lure customers to ad-supported tiers, Samba TV suggests that millennials are an inviting group to target.

In a new Guide to Targeting Millennials, Samba TV said that generation of viewers is more open to ad-supported video-on-demand than other generations.

“Millennials are the generation that grew up on cable and were first to cut the cord, and have revealed themselves to be a core audience on AVOD and FAST platforms,” Samba TV co-founder and CEO Ashwin Navin said. “Their willingness to consume ads when streaming is a unique opportunity for advertisers to reach more than 20% of the U.S. population, with more spending power than retiring baby boomers. By embracing an omni-screen strategy that addresses all the platforms where millennials consume video, advertisers can align their campaigns to connect with this hugely impactful audience.”

Samba TV said there are about 72 million millennials with more than $2.5 trillion in spending power, making the demographic group attractive to advertisers.

The report is based on a survey of 2,507 adults conducted by HarrisX that found that eight of 10 millennials stream TV shows, with 84% of those streamers using Netflix.

Of the millennial Netflix subscribers, 21% signed up for the ad tier, with 68% of them subscribing after Netflix introduced its lower-priced tier with commercials.

Now grown up, 73% of millennials subscribe to a streaming service just for their kids.

The survey found that 68% of millennials have an ad-supported streaming service, more than any other generation.

A majority of millennials — 68% — said they would be likely to change their streaming subscriptions if a current one released a cheaper version with ads.

At a certain point, too many commercials is too many, even for millennials: 71% said that watching the same ad over and over again in a month would worsen their perception.

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.