Your residents are ready for some football … and “Stranger Things” on Netflix … and “House of the Dragon” on HBO Max … and many other popular sports, TV shows, movies and video content.
The real question is: Can your network handle all the demand? Or, will your residents experience significant lag or, worse yet, be prohibited from watching the premier of their favorite show or their favorite team march down the field because your network is just not up to snuff?
Property owners of multi-dwelling units (MDUs) today need to consider whether they’re doing enough to satisfy the needs of their residents’ changing TV watching habits.
Streaming Consumption is Soaring to New Heights Consumers are subscribing to streaming services and “cutting the cord” on traditional cable TV at increasingly rapid rates. Overall, consumer habits and preferences are changing when it comes to viewing video, and, as a result, the technology that powers these streaming services has to as well.
Here are some eye-opening streaming statistics to prove this point:
· By year end, more than half (55.1%) of all consumers in the U.S. are expected to cut the cord.
· Just about every American between 25 and 34 years old exclusively streams their TV content.
· Over the past few years, the total number of subscriptions to cable TV has decreased by 2.7 million.
· In 2021, 39% of people watched live sports games through some streaming service.
The popularity of streaming — and the switch away from traditional cable TV service — is only expected to increase in coming years. And that should change the way property owners look at how they are providing connectivity to their residents.
Streaming ‘Spikes’ Happen at Certain Times When Netflix debuted Season 4 of its ultra-popular “Stranger Things” show in late May, people all around the country tried to stream it at the same time. According to the company, people streamed 7.2 billion minutes of the show in just the first week that it was available on the platform — between May 30 and June 5.
Spikes like that occur for all big shows that have similar hype to “Stranger Things.” It’s not just on Netflix, either. Similar rushes of streaming demand are expected for HBO’s upcoming prequel to “Game of Thrones,” known as “House of the Dragon.”
With live sports events, these spikes occur more consistently, i.e., at any time there is a big game. When the NFL and NCAA football kick off in September, for example, millions of people are expected to request streaming video services at times that are normally considered dead periods — Saturday and Sunday afternoons.
The NFL reported that streaming increased 18% from the 2021 to 2022 season — and that only includes games that were streamed via ESPN+, Paramount+ and Peacock. It doesn’t count any games that were broadcast over streaming TV services such as YouTube TV or Hulu + Live TV.
Similar spikes are expected when the men’s FIFA World Cup 2022 kicks off in late November.
Video content can only be viewed, though, if the internet service they’re streamed over can handle the traffic. Today, people might expect to have trouble streaming a 4K UHD version of an NFL game over public a Wifi network or using 4G/5G service on their cellphone.
But, where they expect that streaming to work perfectly is in their home or on their complex’s property.
Is Your Network Built to Handle Streaming? Building owners in the MDU space have often focused on providing outstanding amenities such as a state-of-the-art gym, pool and community center. But, today, residents are much more concerned with the performance and ability of their internet connection.
A pool, gym and community center won’t matter to residents if they aren’t able to do what they consider basic — streaming their favorite video content, from wherever they are on your property. That’s why it pays for building owners to consider outstanding internet connectivity to be on the same level as other basic necessities such as water, HVAC and laundry.
Residents today need outstanding internet connectivity; they can’t live without it.
Not only do they use it to stream TV, they use it to power their lives. Kids need it for school. Adults need it to work. And they all need to use it — seamlessly — at the same time, from wherever they are on your property.
“Internet connectivity can no longer be viewed as an add-on or as an ancillary accessory,” explains Barry Rubens, chief executive of Elauwit. “Property owners must view it as an essential service that all residents require. Residents will simply look elsewhere if your property doesn’t offer them the internet service they need.”
It’s incumbent on MDU property owners today to provide this best-in-class connectivity throughout their properties — not just in individual units, but in common areas as well.
Not sure whether you are providing your residents what they need from an internet technology standpoint? Contact Elauwit today for a full assessment of your current offerings and what we can do to make your property more desirable from an internet connectivity standpoint.