Happy Streaming Day! As we reflect on a decade of the holiday (yes, it's been 10 years already!), it’s a good time to consider how far streaming has come — and where it’s headed.
Streaming Day is an unofficial holiday occurring on May 20, intended to celebrate streaming media. At Roku, we view Streaming Day as an opportunity to celebrate a shared love of TV and say “thank you” to our streamers with subscription offers, hardware deals, and sweepstakes. It’s also an opportunity to say “thank you” to our advertising partners with unique insights and data-driven analysis that can help you thrive during the next decade of streaming.
Below we delve into the evolution of streaming over the past 10 years, as it grew from a nascent channel to the preferred way to watch TV, movies and sports. Additionally, we share five tips to make your brand unmissable to the ever-expanding streaming TV audience from the moment they power on their devices.
2014-2017: Streaming gains steam
From the unforgettable moments at the Sochi Winter Olympics to the launch of legendary TV series like Fargo, Broad City and Silicon Valley — 2014 was an exciting year for TV. While Guardians of the Galaxy dominated the box office, streaming platforms were growing in popularity, with shows like House of Cards and Orange is the New Black leading the way.
During this time, some consumers cut the cord with cable, while others shaved their bills by switching to smaller channel packages or virtual pay TV offerings delivered over an internet connection. By 2014, it became clear that people wanted an alternative to cable and broadcast TV — and the momentum for streaming was building. After users increasingly searched for "free" on the platform, Roku launched The Roku Channel in 2017 as a free, ad-supported option. However, the streaming wars – as they came to be called – had yet to begin and wouldn’t for another few years. Around this time, half of the current top 10 channels by reach on Roku still did not exist.¹
2020: Pandemic reshapes behaviors and consumer expectations
The pandemic disrupted daily routines, and demand for stay-at-home products and services, including TV streaming, boomed. Legacy media companies launched direct-to-consumer services — and the streaming wars raged. Winning hinged on subscriber growth, which drove streaming services to release content in record numbers. Meanwhile, with movie theaters closed, the biggest blockbusters came directly to our living rooms.
By the end of 2020, traditional TV hours had fallen 3% year-over-year while TV streaming hours had grown 53%.² As remote work became the norm ,mid-day viewership peaked.³ Also worth noting: Parasite's historic Oscars win spurred interest in foreign language content, foreshadowing explosive interest in series like Squid Game and Money Heist.⁴
2023: Hollywood strike delays anticipated content
A Hollywood labor dispute brought production to a standstill. It felt like everything was on hold — from hit series like Euphoria and Yellowstone to anticipated films like Challengers and Dune: Part 2. However, the strike also sparked renewed engagement in unscripted programming and live broadcasts and drove interest in nostalgia programming as people watched older movies as they waited for the new releases. When streamers search for a series on Roku, the average query is for a title that is nearly 14 years old, and only 16% of series searches on Roku are for shows that currently air on broadcast TV.⁵
2024: Ad Supported Programming Surges
Today, streaming tops TV’s usage at 38.4% of total viewership — beating out both cable (29.1%) and broadcast (22.2%).⁶ In fact, the number of Roku users willing to subscribe to three or more services has increased 50% since 2019.⁷ With entertainment options, it has become clear that consumers are loyal to content, not services. This was driven home by escalating churn rates. In fact, at the end of 2023 nearly one in four streaming consumers qualified as serial churners — a 42% year-over-year increase, according to Antenna.
To meet Wall Street's profitability expectations, media companies have pivoted to ad-supported tiers, enticing consumers with free or cheaper content in exchange for viewing ads. According to Antenna, it worked: ad-supported sign-ups are increasing. One-fourth of streaming sign-ups were ad-supported through H1 2023, up from about one-fifth in 2021.⁸
5 strategies to make your brand unmissable to streaming audiences
With the dynamic shifts in streaming over the past decade, it's essential for advertisers to strategically position themselves throughout the streamer’s journey. Here are five tactics to consider:
1. Simplify content discovery
With so many entertainment options, streamers crave ease of access. You can easily surface your brand or content offering to diverse demographics through curated playlists and free content bundles. It worked for Timberland, which celebrated 50 years of its iconic original boot by building a curated playlist of movies and shows on Roku thematically tied to culture change makers. Called Bold Built Different, it was accessible via Marquee ads on Roku’s home — the front door to TV for U.S. households with 120 million people. The campaign led to a 20% lift in purchase intent and 16% lift in brand favorability from multicultural viewers ages 18-44.⁹
2. Amplify new releases
Forty-two percent of Roku users appreciate being reminded about buzzworthy shows,¹⁰ and 66% say that excitement about a new release drives them to go to the movies.¹¹ Therefore, brands should utilize streaming ads to generate buzz around new releases.
Move beyond traditional 30-second spots to engage viewers with immersive promotional experiences that resonate with their interests and preferences. A sweeping campaign for Barbie featured Barbie and Ken greeting viewers on the home screen, Barbie’s Dream House in Roku City, and a banner with QR code to let viewers easily buy tickets from a nearby theater.
3. Lean into live sports
Sports is king. Just look at the ratings for NFL games or the prices for courtside seats to see Catilin Clark’s WNBA debut. And sports are being streamed more now than ever. One way to lean in? For entertainment advertisers, promote sports before, during and after the season to help fans find the games they love and keep them watching your channel when the season is over. Streaming channels are taking over the Roku Home Screen on Game Day, sponsoring the Roku Sports Experience in-season, and re-targeting users after the final game with library content.
4. Help streamers find the news over the noise
When Global News breaks, streaming is a destination people go to stay informed, and news can attract an even broader audience during an election year - 35% of Roku users are interested in watching news/election coverage live this year.¹² Rather than chasing a breaking news story and hoping that you catch streamer attention in time, build awareness for your News channel via evergreen branding messaging to be top-of-mind when breaking news happens and be unmissable on the Roku Home Screen during newsworthy calendar events to build familiarity.
5. Tap into nostalgia
Sixty-two percent of Roku users say a top consideration for using a new streaming service is its library of old favorites or nostalgic content.¹³ On Roku, cultural holidays, notable dates, and title anniversaries drive searches for familiar favorites. Last year, there was a 295% increase in week-over-week clicked searches on Roku for Star Wars titles the week ending May 4th – the week of Star Wars Day. And, thanks to the iconic line in Mean Girls, the title saw a 98% week-over-week increase in searches on Roku the week of October 3rd.¹⁴ In lieu of new content, entertainment brands can respond to the demand for nostalgia by surfacing content recommendations that align with these moments or incorporating iconic brand elements into the Roku user experience like Paramount+ did in Roku City.
Want to reach a growing audience of TV streamers? Contact Roku Advertising to learn more.
¹ Roku Internal Data, 2016
² Roku Analysis of Nielsen Data, 2020
³ Roku Internal Data, 2020
⁴ Antenna, 2020
⁵ Internal Roku Data, 2023
⁶ Nielsen
⁷ Roku Internal Data, 2019-2024; In 2024, a random sample of 2,956 Roku users were surveyed via email between Jan 31 - Feb 22, 2024
⁸ Antenna, June 2023
⁹ Kantar Millward Brown Brand Lift & Roku Brand Experience Insights Study; Campaign Dates: September – October 2023
¹⁰ Roku Internal Data, 2024; In 2024, a random sample of 2,956 Roku users were surveyed via email between Jan 31 - Feb 22, 2024
¹¹ National Research Group Custom Survey, 2024
¹² Roku Internal Data, 2024; In 2024, a random sample of 2,956 Roku users were surveyed via email between Jan 31 - Feb 22, 2024
¹³ Roku Internal Data, 2024; In 2024, a random sample of 2,956 Roku users were surveyed via email between Jan 31 - Feb 22, 2024
¹⁴ Roku Internal Data, 2023-2024
