In the early days of the internet, “silver surfers” were widely patronised as unskilled and awkward cyberspace settlers.
Today, however, “silver streamers” are reckoned to hold the key to the future of advertising-supported media.
Analyst group MIDiA Research used the term to refer to a demographic of over-55s who, if they weaned themselves off their reliance on traditional TV services, could drive significant adoption of streaming video platforms.
Whereas streaming services had previously been embraced by younger users, MIDiA’s Tim Mulligan said silver streamers were now just as likely to watch back-to-back shows.
“Older, wealthier, lean-back, and traditionally more conservative audiences will provide the revenue underpinning the ecosystem,” Mulligan wrote.
The extent to which silver streamers are driving the video market matters to advertisers, because of these viewers’ particular attitudes toward TV advertising.
Whereas younger streaming customers have become subscribers to paid platforms and have developed a greater aversion to advertising messaging, Mulligan said: “Silver streamers can be the catalyst for AVOD services going mainstream. The reasoning being that this age group are familiar and tolerant of ad interruptions on TV, as it’s something they expect on pay TV.”
AVODs are the new Ad-Supported Video On Demand services like Pluto TV, The Roku Channel and ITVX, although Netflix and Disney+ are adding free, ad-supported tiers to their subscription video-on-demand (SVoD) offerings, too.
This ad tolerance and familiarity could add up for ad buyers, because pockets of the over-55s are lucrative advertiser prospects, with more resources at hand than younger generations.
In digital media, it seems, what’s old is new again.