NEW YORK—It’s beginning to look like 2020 will be the year of the Great Streaming Wars, as the number of companies that now offer video streaming services to consumers continues to grow.

Over the next few months at least a half-dozen companies will attempt to stake a claim on household entertainment budgets with unique streaming offers. But there may be a threshold for how many subscriptions consumers are willing to support, or at least for how much they’re willing to pay, according to a recent YouGov survey. 

Just over half (56 percent) of America already subscribes to between one and three services, according to YouGov data, and the research firm predicts that about a quarter (26 percent) of Americans seem ready to add a new subscription.

That number goes up when looking at current cord cutters, or those who already have moved to use streaming services instead of a cable or satellite provider for video. A large portion (40 percent) of this group say they are somewhat or very likely to subscribe to more services.

When the question changes to money, the dynamics shift a bit. More than a third (37 percent) of all Americans say that between $1 and $20 is the maximum they’re willing to spend on entertainment subscriptions each month, according to YouGov’s survey. That spending threshold is similar among cable subscribers. YouGov classified subscriptions as streaming TV and movie services such as Netflix and Hulu, as well as music services such as Tidal and Spotify.

As expected, the number of people who say they are willing to spend more narrows at the higher end of the scale. On the top, a small segment of Americans (5 percent) is willing to pay $71 or more per month for entertainment options, according to the YouGov survey findings.


More Images