GfK: Cord Nevers & Cord Cutters Differ in Streaming Networks, Shows

New research from GfK finds that the preferences of so-called “cord nevers” and “cord cutters” differ in many ways, including their tastes in streaming video platforms and the shows they watch on them.

According to GfK MRI’s Cord Evolution studies, four of the top ten streaming shows among cord nevers (defined as TV viewers who have never paid for a traditional TV connection) do not even appear among the favorites of cord cutters (viewers who had and then eliminated standard TV subscriptions).

Both groups list Orange Is the New Black as their favorite streaming-only show. Cord cutters’ other favorites, in descending order, are Stranger Things, House of Cards, Fuller House, Making a Murderer, Luke Cage, Marvel’s Jessica Jones, Daredevil, Black Mirror and Arrested Development. Meanwhile, cord nevers’ list, in order, is Fuller House, Stranger Things, Daredevil, The Mindy Project, All or Nothing, Narcos, Black Mirror, Arrested Development and Man in the High Castle.

While three of cord nevers’ favorite shows are found on Amazon or Hulu, all ten of cutters’ top shows are on Netflix. Netflix is the number one streaming video service among cord cutters, with 57 percent saying they have used the service in the past year; in addition, 50 percent said they had used YouTube and 37 percent used Amazon. Among cord nevers, YouTube tops Netflix (46 percent versus 39 percent), with Amazon again coming in third (at just 25 percent).

Cord cutters account for 8 percent of the U.S. population and have an average age of 43, while cord nevers represent 9 percent of all U.S. consumers and are generally nine years younger on average (34). Over half (52 percent) of cord nevers are millennials (ages 18 to 34), compared to just 35 percent of cord cutters.

“Cord nevers and cord cutters bring very different histories and expectations to viewing,” said Karen Ramspacher, GfK MRI’s senior VP of consumer insights and director of the Future of TV research program. “Both groups still have strong allegiance to TV sets and traditional programming models—but they clearly have different viewing tastes, and even diverge on their perceptions of what TV actually is. As millennials get older, we can look for these populations to transform and perhaps grow more similar—while Gen Z will begin to shape the cord never group more and more.”