Video Cord Cutting Survey Shows Less Interest Than You Might Expect
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Their survey represents 24,000 people out of 328,455,795 and growing (Population Clock). That's only .000073069% of the US population. I can't see how they can possibly get any meaningful data from that small a sampling. Even if you accept the survey data interpolation as valid they admit that corded viewers have decreased 6% overall since 2015 and the age group of 18-34 has fallen 9 points from 67% to 58%. Seems to me the trend is clear. 
You can always make a survey citing statistics to skew results in whatever direction you like. I'm waiting for a survey that says drinking 3 Jack & Coke's every night will prolong my life by 10 years
Statisticians do this kind of stuff all the time and they can provide you with uncertainty numbers. It is absolutely possible if you know what you're doing.
A huge failing in your assertion is that the entire population (including children and those who cannot physically enjoy television) individually subscribes to some sort of pay TV. I suspect that if you really broke things down, most cord cutters had a cord to cut before they started and that whacks the number of households (the level at which most surveys are done) down by around 20%. Projections over at statista.com suggest that there's around 97.6 million households that subscribe to pay TV.
It is imperative that Cord Cutting and OTT not be lumped together. I have a pay TV subscription and I also subscribe to Netflix and Amazon Prime but I have no plans to move entirely to OTA/OTT and I expect that many are in the same boat.
On the other side there are people who live in apartments and condos that have TV service included whether or not it meets their wants or needs and those people may choose not to watch TV at home so there's some skew inherent there (that can be accounted for).
24,000 in-person, in-home survey interviews is a HUGE sampling size, collecting a ton of data.
With that said, if you had asked me a month or two before I cut the cord what my intention was, I would've said "No, I have no plans to cut the cord." But then my next bill came. As a moderator in a cord-cutter FB group, I see it all the time. Most posts by new members start out along the lines, "I just got next month's [traditional pay-TV provider name] bill and decided to cut the cord. What services/streaming devices/antennas do you recommend?"
With that said, if you had asked me a month or two before I cut the cord what my intention was, I would've said "No, I have no plans to cut the cord." But then my next bill came. As a moderator in a cord-cutter FB group, I see it all the time. Most posts by new members start out along the lines, "I just got next month's [traditional pay-TV provider name] bill and decided to cut the cord. What services/streaming devices/antennas do you recommend?"
This gate swings both ways. Cord Cutting in the Summer is no big deal but when the Fall season arrives with crappy weather and shorter days, OTT may not meet the need. Even with locals, OTT still seems to be lacking in sports and fresh programming from the networks (broadcast and cable).
Yes, in actual practice many opt not to cut the cord after reviewing their options. In my cord cutter group, many come back saying they're taking advantage of a special year-long promo deal with a traditional pay-TV provider and will reconsider next year. My comment was referring to the survey results and the article (based on a press release) that highlighted intention to cut the cord. I don't think many people spend much time considering changing TV providers any more than they do their home-life insurance company. For many, something would need to trigger it, like a huge bill or a major fail in the services provided.
EDIT: And I seriously doubt the surveyors presented them with all the alternatives to cable and their pricing structures before asking them if they planned to cut the cord. Many people simply don't know enough about what's out there.
I have no plans to give up the convenience of cable anytime soon. Like many I also use Netflix, Amazon and iTunes to get all then content I want.
As others have mentioned, 24k is a large sampling size.
As others have mentioned, 24k is a large sampling size.
Even here, there is a lack of knowledge as to what these services offer, and most members are not your average tv consumer.
For example, you cant watch these channels, it takes to long to find the show I want, you have to use an app for each specific channel.
This should change as more experience it, and not really surprising for the general public, but perhaps a little more surprising among our small group.
That said, its still in the beginning stages.
These survey organizations get paid millions of dollars not to make careless mistakes. I wasn't a participant in this survey but in surveys that I've participated in before, they laid out all the details so there was little room for confusion.
I doubt that the pay TV industry has much to gain by "shaping" the results. They really need to know what their customers (existing and potential) are thinking.
The parties that are doing a disservice are those who use the right data the wrong way (ignoring important conditions on which the statistical model was built where it suits their needs).
There are going to be certain people that cut the cord and certain people that say the ski is falling and certain people that just want to turn on the tv and watch it . My survey shows I am the one that comes home from work or on the weekends that just wants to sit down and enjoy my Dish programming. I don’t plan on cutting my signal anytime in the future.
Sent from my iPhone using the SatelliteGuys app!
Sent from my iPhone using the SatelliteGuys app!
Then they are not reading their bill,if this is what the poll says.
When I became able to stream my TV programming I jumped in with both feet,who wouldn't when there's no HD fee,no box fees,no guide fees,no DVR fees,no outlet fees.
I just had to buy 2 Roku Streaming Stick +'s,which I picked up for 1/3 what my cable company charges for their boxes when you don't turn them in.
If Charter Spectrum wants to compete with cord cutters and wants advice how to compete, I listed my cable companies problems in my 2nd sentence.
Otherwise I will keep saving $70. a month compared to what cable charges.The ironic thing is cable has a great app for TV,they just use it as an addition,not a stand alone option which they should do to compete.
When I became able to stream my TV programming I jumped in with both feet,who wouldn't when there's no HD fee,no box fees,no guide fees,no DVR fees,no outlet fees.
I just had to buy 2 Roku Streaming Stick +'s,which I picked up for 1/3 what my cable company charges for their boxes when you don't turn them in.
If Charter Spectrum wants to compete with cord cutters and wants advice how to compete, I listed my cable companies problems in my 2nd sentence.
Otherwise I will keep saving $70. a month compared to what cable charges.The ironic thing is cable has a great app for TV,they just use it as an addition,not a stand alone option which they should do to compete.
Are we all reading the same numbers? It's quite clear early in the article that the title doesn't jibe with the numbers. 71% have no plans to cut? Holy cow man, that leaves 29%, a not insignificant number. In fact if I were a cable or satellite provider I would be extremely concerned. They also twist the streaming data leading you to believe older folks haven't a clue but younger folks are tuned in. The problem is the numbers, or lack of numbers. First, they admit 48% of people over 50 do have experience streaming but provide no numbers vs the younger crowd. It's supposition by insinuation. In other words the article is bogus.
I think the survey data is useful to the right people but the author of this article seems to have misunderstood what it means. Unfortunately we see a lot of this in reporting, " If you can't dazzle them with brilliance then baffle them with BS"
I think you missed the point. The idea was that OTT uptake is projected to slow down rather than take over. Winning back customers without trying particularly hard is a good thing.
If you took the survey in November, the numbers planning to switch would perhaps be much lower as OTT has a rough patch during the Fall TV season absent great coverage of new shows and live sports programming.
