Discovery Phase: The Dream of a Universal Content Search

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The number of shows launched on streaming and linear TV continues to rise, and viewers have had enough. According to the new annual Hub Research “Conquering Content“ survey, more than half of consumers believe the volume of shows makes it hard to know where to begin.

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The number of new scripted TV shows alone introduced to streaming or cable/satellite services this year alone is nearly 550 — and trending upwards.

At the same time, the number of people clamoring for some form of universal search for content is climbing from 55% a year ago to 61% of those polled by Hub this year.

But current universal search listings and interfaces are underperforming. Per the report, 48% of households with a universal search capability are only using it about 40% of the time.

“That suggests that some providers, like smart TV manufacturers who utilize universal search methods, need to do a better job of making those search features easier for their customers to find or use,” says The Streamable’s David Satin. “Scrolling through streaming services looking for the same show can cause customer frustration, and may even lead to some cancelling their services when they cannot find the show they want.

When it comes to picking new shows to watch it seems that trailers remain a pretty effective way for producers and service providers to cut through the noise. Almost two thirds of us are more likely to choose a show if we can watch a trailer first, with three quarters of those (much higher than last year) who discovered a new favorite show via a trailer saying it ran automatically.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, most viewers still watch their favorite shows on streaming platforms, but streaming’s share over cable and broadcast has stagnated in 2022.

According to Hub’s numbers, the percentage of respondents who said that their favorite show came from an online source has plateaued at 75%, the same figure as 2021. Meanwhile, the number who said their favorite show was from a traditional source — also known as multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) — ticked up slightly from 21% last year to 23% this year.

Of the 10 most frequently named shows that viewers identified as their favorites, four of them — including three of the top five named — are available on live, linear TV: Paramount’s Yellowstone, House of the Dragon on HBO, and Ghosts and NCIS, both on CBS. “Insert overused expression here: ‘content is king,’ etc. But cliché or not, it’s clear from these results that viewers will happily go to whatever platform has exclusive rights to the most popular TV shows and movies du jour,” Hub principal and report co-author Peter Fondulas said. “Over the past few years, those shows have been increasingly offered by streaming services. But as franchises like Yellowstone and Game of Thrones demonstrate, streaming does not have a necessary monopoly on buzz-worthy content.”