Binge Watching Propels Customer Satisfaction, But Canada’s Wireline Providers Need to Innovate, J.D. Power Finds

TV Viewers in Canada love to binge watch, spending more than four hours
in front of the screen per viewing session, according to the J.D. Power
2019 Canada TV Service Provider Satisfaction Study^SM and the
J.D. Power 2019 Internet Service Provider Satisfaction Study,^SM
released today. Nearly four in 10 customers (39%) say they indulge in
marathon viewing through their TV service provider.

The study finds that binge watching is more popular among younger
viewers, especially Gen Z¹ and Gen Y who are nearly twice as
likely to binge-watch content across various platforms, compared with
Pre-Boomers (55% vs 24%, respectively). Binge watching also is
associated with higher customer satisfaction with the TV provider’s
programming, and features and functionality of the service, compared
with those who don’t binge. Younger audiences are twice as likely to use
the streaming app and three times more inclined to use a secondary
streaming account (such as Netflix) through the provider’s interface
than Boomers and Pre-Boomers.

“On the upside, there is a trend of improvement in overall customer
satisfaction since 2015,” said Adrian Chung, Director of the
Technology, Media & Telecom Practice at J.D. Power in Canada.
“However, this trend has plateaued. If TV and ISP providers want to
remain competitive, they need to innovate and stay relevant to younger
audiences. Availability and reliability of the service, wider content
selection and enhancements to streaming apps and user interface are key
areas that can positively affect satisfaction.”

Following are some key findings of the 2019 studies:

• Service disruption erodes satisfaction: Nearly one-third (31%)
  of internet service customers and 29% of TV service customers have
  experienced a service outage in the past three months. Service
  disruption has a significant effect on satisfaction levels.
  Satisfaction with the provider’s performance and reliability drops to
  768 from 820 (on a 1,000-point scale) after the first incident among
  internet users and drops to 734 from 793 after the first incident
  among TV viewers. Satisfaction continues to decline as the number of
  incidents increase.
• Fix it right the first time: Only 60% of TV customers and 58%
  of internet service customers had their question or problem resolved
  during the first contact with their provider. Among TV customers who
  contacted their provider, 15% said they were unable to achieve
  resolution and, among internet service customers, 17% said their
  problem was not resolved. As problem or question resolution drags
  beyond the first contact, overall satisfaction declines significantly,
  dropping to 658 from 733 among internet users and to 686 from 748
  among TV viewers.
• Technician visits—the last line of defense: Nearly half (49%)
  of service visits for internet users and 55% of service visits for TV
  viewers were done by technicians to resolve an issue that could not be
  rectified by a call centre. While this often makes the providers’
  service technicians the last line of defense in resolving a customer
  problem that couldn’t be fixed by other means, it still offers an
  opportunity to deliver an exceptional experience.

Study Rankings

In the East region, Videotron ranks highest in both TV (780) and
Internet Service Provider satisfaction (779) for a seventh consecutive
year. Cogeco ranks second in TV satisfaction (730) and internet
(727).

In the West region, SaskTel ranks highest in both TV (759) and
Internet Service Provider satisfaction (755) for a seventh consecutive
year. TELUS ranks second in this region for both TV
satisfaction (722) and internet (719).

The 2019 Canada Television Provider Customer Satisfaction Study is based
on seven factors (in order of importance): performance and reliability;
cost of service; programming; communications and promotions; features
and functionality; billing and payment; and customer service. The 2019
Canada Internet Service Provider Customer Satisfaction Study measures
overall satisfaction with internet service providers and is based on
five factors (in order of importance): performance and reliability; cost
of service; communications and promotions; billing and payment; and
customer service. The studies are based on responses from 6,443 internet
customers and 6,389 TV customers in Canada. The studies were fielded in
March-April 2019.

For more information about the Canada TV and ISP Satisfaction Studies,
visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/resource/canadian-wireline-satisfaction-study-ca.

See the online press release at http://www.jdpower.com/pr-id/2019091.

J.D. Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory
services and data and analytics. These capabilities enable J.D. Power to
help its clients drive customer satisfaction, growth and profitability.
Established in 1968, J.D. Power has offices serving North America, South
America, Asia Pacific and Europe.

About J.D. Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: http://www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

NOTE: Four tables follow.

Note:

Included in the East Region are New Brunswick, Newfoundland &
Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island and Quebec.
Included
in the West Region are Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Northwest
Territories, Nunavut, Saskatchewan and Yukon Territory.
Charts
and graphs extracted from this press release for use the by the media
must be accompanied by a statement identifying J.D. Power as the
publisher and the study from which it originated as the source. Rankings
are based on numerical scores, and not necessarily on statistical
significance. No advertising or other promotional use cab be made of the
information in this release or J.D. Power survey results without the
express prior written consent of J.D. Power.

^{1 J.D. Power defines generational groups as Pre-Boomers (born
before 1946); Boomers (1946-1964); Gen X (1965-1976); Gen Y (1977-1994);
and Gen Z (1995-2004). Millennials (1982-1994) are a subset of Gen Y.}

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