2019 OTT service churn reaches 35% Details Joseph O'Halloran | 10 March 2020 While churn was assumed an issue once solely reserved for the pay-TV, it would appear that those cutting the cord have no qualms about cutting an over-the-top service according to a survey from Parks Associates and Swrve. The two companies’ work revealed insights on driving engagement and reducing churn in what was shown to be a saturated OTT market. The study looked at the key factors and trends driving OTT service engagement and customer churn and the necessary best practices of customer engagement strategies. Fundamentally the study revealed that the churn rate among all OTT services was a high 35% in 2019, a remarkable increase of 25% from 2018. Needing to cut household expenses was cited as the top reason for cancelling an OTT service by around 30% of the study, closely followed by an inability to find good enough programmes to watch. Rising service prices was indicated by around a fifth of the survey. Interestingly, the data found that churn among vMVPDs, virtual multichannel video programming distributors or online pay-TV providers, was as much as 81% in 2019. However, the study also found that over two-thirds of vMVPD subscribers said that they would find it difficult to give up at least one of their current subscriptions. Parks concluded that this meant that providers that offer the right mix of content, personalisation and ease of use could secure very loyal subscribers. “Overcoming high churn and driving engagement are notable challenges for video service providers, especially as the market becomes more saturated and penetration rates slow,” said Parks Associates research director Steve Nason commenting on the research. “OTT services are offering free trials and promotional offers to drive initial service uptake, but these tactics are also leading to sky-high churn rates. To secure long-term subscriber fidelity, providers need to offer more, including original content and a personalised user experience.” “Anticipating and acting on consumers’ behaviours across channels empowers brands to have relevant engagement that can drive monetisation and retention strategies,” added Bob Strohmeyer, SVP of global customer success, Swrve.