Exclusive data from Hulu breaks down the behaviors of streaming viewers in recent months and identifies 4 distinct categories

• Hulu shared with Business Insider exclusive findings from its recent study, called Generation Stream, on the behaviors of streaming viewers.
• The research found that people who stream typically have four distinct experiences while doing so, including indulging in a guilty-pleasure show or gripping drama, or watching a show because it's part of the cultural conversation.
• "The more we understand the routines of watching, the more we can tailor both the programming and the advertising," Hulu's head of research said. "We're really just getting started in how we figure out how to make this work."
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With new streaming-video services rolling out and a pandemic spurring people to spend more time watching their screens, Hulu took a look at how people are spending their time while streaming video in a new study of viewers.
The US-based platform found that most streaming experiences fell into four distinct buckets, like indulging in a guilty-pleasure show or gripping drama, or watching a show because it's part of the cultural conversation.
The research has the potential to shape how Hulu programs for its platform and works with advertisers, Julie DeTraglia, Hulu's head of research, told Business Insider.
If Hulu can start to identify these streaming experiences as they happen, for instance, it could allow advertisers to tailor messaging for them, similar to the way brands already customize creative to match certain shows or habits like binge-watching on Hulu.
"The more we understand the routines of watching, the more we can tailor both the programming and the advertising," DeTraglia said. "We're really just getting started in how we figure out how to make this work."
Hulu's findings on streaming experiences were shared exclusively with Business Insider. They're are part of a larger Hulu research project, called Generation Stream, which examines the habits of streaming users. The research will continue rolling out this year, including at the service's June Newfront event for advertisers.
The research, which started in January, included interviews with 20 "culture setters" conducted with the boutique research agency Culture Co-op, followed by an April survey of more than 2,500 13- to 54-year-olds about their behaviors while streaming.
"The TV landscape changes so rapidly," DeTraglia said. "We wanted to get a pulse check right now, especially as there are so many new ways to stream."
Since the survey in April, Hulu's research also offers a snapshot of viewing in the time of the coronavirus pandemic. US states started going into lockdown in March to help slow the spread of the virus.
"This does capture sort of current state of affairs that change daily, but I think we settled a bit after the first month of quarantine," DeTraglia said. "All viewing has been up and streaming, has been up more than everything else."

Hulu spotted 4 distinct streaming experiences

Hulu found 90% of the survey respondents streamed video and that their streaming experiences fell into four distinct camps.
They either:

• Got lost in a show, such as a guilty-pleasure reality series or a gripping drama, and likely binge-watched.
• Leaned back and took comfort in nostalgia or a feel-good show that lightly reflected on the world or state of affairs.
• Chose smart, niche, or global content that's part of the cultural conversation.
• Watched streaming video like they would regular TV, at a set time, often with family and friends, or as part of a daily routine, such as with morning talk shows or evening news.

The most common experience was the lean-back experience, which Hulu described as "therapeutic." More than 40% of respondents had had this kind of streaming experience before.


DeTraglia said the coronavirus pandemic likely didn't change people's behaviors much.
"All these experiences existed pre-COVID," she said. But the crisis did affect how much people stream.
Hulu, like other streaming services, has said viewing has risen as people spend more time at home.
Beyond the survey, the company has also noticed a few shifts in viewing among its users, including people watching TV together more often and binging more frequently.
Coviewing on Hulu was up 15% during March compared with March 2019, the company said. Binge-watching on Hulu, which the company defines as watching three or more episodes in a given session, is also up over 40% year over year.
DeTraglia said her research team of about 50 staffers, who span ad-sales research, consumer-marketing insights, and user-experience research, typically commission a few studies per year of the scale of Generation Stream, which will be shared throughout the company, as well as with advertisers, publishers, and other partners.
This is the team's first focus on the streaming behaviors of people who stream first and foremost, as opposed to the behaviors of generational cohorts like Generation Z or Millennials. The team plans to spend more time analyzing what streaming users who span generation, race, and gender have in common.
"Gen Z ... their viewing habits are very different," DeTraglia said. "But I'm not Gen Z, and my viewing habits are very different. Streaming has changed the way that we view ... That's really where this came from."
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* This article was originally published here 
https://www.businessinsider.com/hulu-data-on-streaming-viewer-behavior-during-coronavirus-2020-5