Personal profiles are favoured by over half of OTT TV viewers, according to the findings of the latest report by SPB TV.
Surveying 50,000 respondents out of its 60 million-user base, though mainly targeted at emerging markets and migrant communities worldwide, SPB TV Survey 2016 A Slice of Personalization found that the share of respondents already using such profiles, which allow users to createtheir own content collections, access their viewing history, select a name and avatar, and much more, is inversely correlated to their age.
It is the largest among the GenerationZ users and the Millennials (27% in both age groups) and the lowest among the Baby Boomers (14% of respondents).
However, there is no reason to believe that only younger viewers are interested in administering their personal space in the service.
The percentage of respondents saying they are not interested in this feature slightly increases from 36% among the Generation Z viewers to 55% among the Silent Generation, confirming that even among the 71+ respondents almost a half use or would like to use personal profiles.
The survey also notes that while the value of personal profiles on shared in-home devices, like smart TVs and set-top boxes, is widely disputed in the
industry.
Indeed, almost half of respondents are certain they want to have their profiles available on shared screens. This answer is the most often cited by all age groups – from 39% among the Baby Boomers to 49% among the respondents aged under 36.
Approximately a quarter of all respondents consider that a personal profile on an in-home screen will not be used exclusively by its owner, but don’t mind this possibility.
The most highly valued personal profile feature is the ability to control your own content lists: choose favourites, set show reminders and so on. Almost two-thirds (65%) of respondents take
advantage of this opportunity.
Half of the viewers appreciate personalised content recommendations provided by the service.
Asked specifically about content recommendations’ value, 47% of respondents described them as very helpful for discovering new exciting content and choosing what to watch at the moment.
The report notes that this is a highly encouraging result for recommendation technology providers.
A third of respondents think that there is room for improvement, and recommendations should be more accurate.
Only 10% of the OTT TV users don’t like getting any content recommendations.
