Between October 2022 and August 2023, J.D. Power gathered responses from 23,584 customers for its 2023 U.S. Television Service Provider Satisfaction Study. The study evaluated overall satisfaction based on seven factors: performance and reliability; cost of service; programming; communications and promotions; billing and payment; features and functionality; and customer care, to offer a comprehensive assessment of perceptions of current television service providers.
Those surveyed revealed that only 12% of live TV streaming customers are likely to switch services in the next year, compared to 21% of cable and satellite customers. The study highlights a higher level of satisfaction among live TV streaming customers across all seven evaluated factors, including performance, cost, and customer care.
J.D. Power Senior Director of Technology, Media and Telecom Intelligence Carl Lepper noted, “Although the cost of running a cable or satellite providing company is innately more expensive given the engineering and execution of such a service, it is hard to ignore the vast difference in cost between them and the live TV streaming companies.”
On average, live TV streaming costs $69 per month, while cable and satellite services cost $113 per month. Despite the inherent operational costs for cable and satellite companies, Lepper emphasized, “Streaming is succeeding in all areas, especially customer care. Of the mere 30% of all streaming customers contacting customer service this year, 84% feel that it was somewhat or very easy to resolve their problem. This is key to not only maintaining their current customer base but also for continued growth.”
In the study’s rankings, DISH led in the national cable/satellite TV segment for the sixth consecutive year with a score of 709, followed by DIRECTV at 705. In the cable/satellite TV regional rankings, Verizon Fios, DIRECTV, and DISH were among the top performers. Meanwhile, in the live TV streaming segment, YouTube TV came out on top with a score of 795, followed closely by Hulu + Live TV at 785.
