In the dynamic media landscape, strategic models around profit optimization, audience engagement, and long-term business sustainability are both paramount to success and under construction. As content distribution strategies evolve, many media companies are capitalizing on the surge of Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV (FAST) channels. These channels are a gateway for new monetization streams, aligning with consumer preferences for affordable, lean-back content experiences.
FAST platforms have emerged as a leading television source for digital audiences. In 2023, Kantar’s research highlighted FAST as the fastest-growing streaming tier in the US, with 47% of American households utilizing a FAST service weekly. As subscribers seek cost-cutting measures and streamline their video services, integrating a FAST service becomes an increasingly economically attractive option.
At the same time, live sports rights investment and the transition to streaming for premium live events present both challenges and opportunities. The sports broadcasting competition has intensified, with streaming giants and traditional broadcasters vying for viewers’ attention. Live sports now occupy a central position in the content strategies of media businesses, driving innovation and reshaping the competitive landscape.
Navigating success in the live sports revolution
Amid constant change in media, live sports rights have remained a key driver for audience attention—and more importantly—audience retention. At the same time, the rise of online video consumption and affordable streaming technology has democratized access to niche sports content.
The attraction of major live sports events is undeniable, drawing in massive audience numbers across traditional broadcasts and streaming. While live sports events, predominantly NFL games, accounted for 96% of the most-watched TV broadcasts in the US in 2023. This year, the NFL’s first streaming-exclusive playoff broke streamed event viewership records with 23 million viewers.
The surge in demand for high-value live content poses challenges and opportunities for streaming players like YouTube, Amazon Prime Video, and Apple TV+. Originally designed for on-demand video, these platforms must now adapt their infrastructure to deliver global-scale live sports events. Meanwhile, Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, and Fox have collaborated on a new sports streaming platform, bridging digital and linear TV audiences. This has meant that major content rights owners face the delicate task of catering to diverse viewers across platforms.
Meanwhile, traditional linear broadcasting continues to hold its ground for major live events. Super Bowl LVIII had a 30+ second delay on digital platforms compared to conventional cable. In this dynamic arena, striking the right balance ensures optimal monetization across multiple viewing platforms. Audiences don’t just want to have the same high-quality and low-delay experience on FAST platforms. They also wish to access content that is new and fresh and have the option to watch with friends regardless of the viewing platform.
How FAST channels are pioneering the path to uncharted growth
FAST channels are evolving rapidly, driven by localization, live news, and sports. As media companies adapt and innovate, they pave the way for engaging, relevant, and revenue-generating content experiences. This year, we can expect to see the market mature, with media companies generating more revenue from FAST channels as their audiences expand and their content offering becomes more focused — and increasingly geared around valuable live content.
One of the key opportunities around FAST and digital linear channels is the ability to deliver geographically tailored content experiences to local audiences. This localization ranges from local and regional sports coverage to local news, enhancing audience engagement and strengthening platform loyalty.
Live news is emerging as a critical component in the FAST ecosystem, enabling media companies to grow their digital audiences and unlock new monetization streams. Content and channel creators find that delivering live news helps media organizations engage younger, digital-first viewers who may have drifted away from traditional subscription services but are actively engaging with content on alternative platforms.
Live sports are increasingly becoming key to retaining audiences for FAST channels and digital platforms, with as many as 118 million in the U.S. expected to stream their favorite sports by 2025 according to eMarketer. SVOD churn was at over 30% in 2023; appointment viewing content like live sports creates consumer stickiness. It also opens up new advertising opportunities, as advertisers can target younger demographics at scale.
The two key challenges of live news and live sports on FAST and other digital platforms are a) being able to create platform-specific versions in real-time, inexpensively, and at scale and b) delivering high-quality and low-delay consumer experience.
It makes business sense to integrate a robust tech stack that can be leveraged for live sports and that delivers geography-specific versions in real time while being cost-efficient. The right technology can empower content creators to easily spin up rich channels for any platforms that attract new audiences with relevant, customized content experiences while providing valuable opportunities for advertisers.
Unlocking the key to success with real-time customization
In today’s dynamic landscape, the ability to distribute content at an unprecedented scale while maintaining cost efficiency has become more crucial than ever. Content owners grapple with seamlessly delivering their offerings across multiple distribution channels while adhering to tight budgets and limited resources.
Real-time customization and content versioning are intricate processes, growing in complexity as the scale of content distribution increases. This complexity stems from the need to tailor content for different regions, languages, and platforms, all while ensuring maximum monetization via localized, targeted advertising. Live versioning is incredibly demanding, particularly in high stakes scenarios when dealing with live sports content.
Powered by advances in automation, innovation in content versioning is simplifying multi-platform distribution for live sports, ensuring that content is seamlessly prepared with platform-specific video requirements for multiple subscription OTT, digital, and FAST platforms. Media brands can utilize cloud-enabled versioning tools to deliver custom ad profiles and tailored graphics, audio, and local language commentary to meet the diverse needs of a global audience.
This is a fantastic opportunity for leagues, conferences, broadcasters, and rights buyers to scale their distribution and monetization capabilities without heavy CapEx investment or additional headcount.
Content creators and broadcasters who master real-time customization and versioning will thrive, seeing substantial benefits around audience engagement and global ROI on high value sports properties.
Securing FAST success with IP-based technology
Predicting what's next in the evolving media world is never easy, but one thing will always remain: the power of live content. Live sports, news, and events will be pivotal drivers of success for major organizations in 2024, captivating audiences, fostering platform loyalty, and drawing in ad buyers in a crowded digital space.
Delivering live content effectively and reliably requires robust, global and distributed IP-based infrastructure while supporting innovative content versioning technologies. The ability to tailor live events and linear channels provides content owners the peace of mind they need while unlocking next-generation possibilities.
Major players are fighting hard to build and evolve a powerful live content strategy, but just doing the basics right won’t cut it anymore. To meet the level of global scale required today, winning players will need to pivot their approach to customize and deliver more live sports, news, and events than ever before via future-ready, distribution strategies ready to deliver valuable content to consumers wherever they are.
