Dolphins-Chiefs NFL playoff game on Peacock watched by 28 percent of American adults
NFL fans have spoken - and it's not good news for those who are not happy that more and more games are being streamed on paid sites.
With Super Bowl 58 upon us - being broadcast by CBS - how long before the NFL championship game is a streaming-only broadcast?
According to a recent Seton Hall Sports Poll, 28 percent of American adults said they watched last month's Dolphins-Chiefs wild-card playoff game - which also drew the highest ratings for any live streaming event in U.S. history - on Peacock.
More importantly to the future of these telecasts, of those who watched, 50 percent said they did not have a subscription to Peacock before the game.
Also, among self-described sports fans, 42 percent said they watched the game – 48 percent of those who watched did not have a subscription to Peacock before the game.
The poll was conducted February 1-5 among 1,523 adults across the country.
In case you forgot - and who could? - the Dolphins-Chiefs game was the first in NFL history to be shown exclusively on a streaming service, drawing nearly 28 million viewers. Peacock reportdly paid $110 million for those rights.
There have been other NFL regular-season games streamed but those also were shown on network TV. Accordingly, there were a lot of NFL fans - and Dolphins fans - not happy about having to purchase the Peacock package, which cost $5.99 per month. Even if they purchased it and dropped it after one month.
More: NFL's streaming rules for Dolphins-Chiefs unfairly shut out Palm Beach County fans | Habib
And if this study is any indication that's apparently going to turn into the norm.
“The experiment is over and streaming has fully arrived in the world of sports – and that could change everything,” said Seton Hall Professor Charles Grantham, Director of the Center for Sport Management. “This game, those ratings and the Peacock subscription gains puts the sports media industry at a point of no return. For leagues and teams, streaming is the next major revenue source.”
Of those who watched the game on Peacock, according to the poll, 69 percent said they plan to keep their subscription for more than three months. Among sports fans, that number rose to 72 percent.
Also, according to the poll's findings:
30 percent said they did not watch as a matter of principle. For sports fans that number rose to 44 percent.
38 percent of the general population and 52 percent of sports fans said they simply did not want to pay for a streaming service.
18 percent said they did not watch because it was too difficult to find the game, with that number rising to 29 percent for sports fans.
“These numbers are stunning and seem to show that many sports fans are still on the sidelines and, importantly, available,” said Daniel Ladik, Marketing Professor in the Stillman School and chief methodologist to the Poll. “Three of the biggest barriers to watching this game on a streaming platform – principle, money and logistics (simply being able to find the game) – were not cited as major hurdles for a sizable portion of the general population and, more importantly, sports fans.”
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Dolphins-Chiefs NFL playoff game on Peacock watched by 28 percent of adults
