Advanced Television

Survey: Viewers turn to SVoDs as ‘starting gate’ for streaming

September 15, 2025

Today’s consumers typically use four or more streaming services. For providers, reducing churn is now the top priority – and engagement has become a stronger indicator of brand health than subscriber counts. Since 2013, Hub’s annual Decoding the Default survey has measured which platforms US consumers consider their ‘home base’ for TV – ie, the first thing they turn on/ when they want to watch TV content.

In 2025, more viewers start their viewing sessions on an SVoD platform than anywhere else. To add, more start watching on Netflix than any other streamer – but alternative platforms (especially YouTube) are beginning to cut into that lead.

More viewers default to SVoD than to live TV

·   About a third (32 per cent) of viewers say they start watching by turning on live TV – from pay-TV operator, live streaming from a virtual MVPD, or live broadcast networks from an antenna.

·   But 40 per cent default to a paid SVoD service, and another 17 per cent start watching on a free streaming service (usually YouTube).

Almost 80% of younger viewers default to streaming sources

·   56 per cent of viewers under 35 default to a paid streaming service and another 22 per cent start watching on a free streaming platform.

·   Only 15 per cent default to watching live TV.

Netflix dominates other streaming platforms – but the competition is getting tighter

·   A fifth (19 per cent) of respondents say that Netflix is their starting point for TV – almost twice as many as default to YouTube (11 per cent), and 4x the next highest paid streaming service (Hulu, at 5 per cent).  But the numbers also show the collective investment in competing streamers is eroding Netflix’s lead:
– In aggregate, more viewers (21 per cent) said their default was a paid SVoD service other than Netflix.
– The percentage of viewers who say that Netflix is their default has fallen from 23 per cent in 2020.

More young viewers start watching on YouTube than on live TV

·   26 per cent of viewers under 35 start watching on Netflix, and a fifth (18 per cent) start with content on YouTube.

·   Only 15 per cent say their default source is live TV (one third the rate of viewers 35 and up).

In the battle against churn, earning the title of ‘TV default’ is a potent weapon

·   In the survey, respondents saw a list of all the services they subscribe to or use.  Hub asked “if you had to get rid of all these services except one, which would you keep?” Users who said a given service was their default were far more likely to keep it, compared to users of that service in general – for some brands, as much as 5x to 6x more likely.


“This year’s findings underscore how crowded and competitive the TV ecosystem has become,” said Jon Giegengack, Founder and Principal at Hub and one of the study authors.  “Netflix is the dominant streaming platform and now offers something for everyone: scripted and unscripted TV, original movies, live events and now sports.  But this opens an opportunity for the legion of smaller, more specialised services that focus on super-serving specific audiences.”

“The data is clear: being a viewer’s default dramatically increases the likelihood they’ll keep you,” said Christina Pisano, consultant at Hub and one of the study authors. “First-stop status drives more sessions, more time spent, and higher retention. That’s why the battle for the TV home base is the most important fight in today’s entertainment landscape,” added Giegengack.

These findings are from Hub’s 2025 Decoding the Default report, based on a survey conducted among 1,600 US consumers with broadband, age 16-74, who watch at least one hour of TV per week. Interviews were conducted in August 2025 and explored consumers’ default options for viewing sources and how those have changed over time.

Categories: Articles, Consumer Behaviour, Premium, Research, VOD

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