Value by Design: Building a Better Streaming UX
and Discovery Experience
CTAM + Hub Entertainment Research | June 2026
Quantitative Study: 3,000 Participants
Viewers have more choices across TV providers and streaming apps than ever before but remain unclear about what makes one subscription more valuable than another.
New CTAM research, in partnership with Hub Entertainment, reveals how streaming services can win the next phase of competition—through better design, smarter discovery, and more trusted user experiences.
What You’ll Learn
- The most important things TV apps need to do
- How well they are doing those things today
- Breakthrough design ideas that increase perceived value and reduce churn
Key Highlights
- Viewers don’t trust TV apps as the authority on which shows are worth watching
- Recommendations from TV apps feel generic, not personalized
- Users take friction in design and user experience personally
- 80% of viewers experience at least one problem that happens “all the time” which make services less valuable
- Two-thirds of viewers do some of their decision making outside of TV apps
Information overload makes TV harder to use – 62% say they often have a title in mind but can’t remember the service it’s on
Understanding Value Destruction
The study tested 20 user experience problems to learn:
- How often they happen
- How frustrating they are when they do
- Their impact on subscription decisions services less valuable
36% have cancelled a subscription because the app was frustrating to use and that rises to 43% for viewers under age 25
Designing for Retention & Growth
The study generated 13 design elements and feature solutions that revealed:
- What would make a TV service more valuable
- What would make you more likely to keep a subscription (and it’s not new or better content)
- The top five most likely solutions to reduce churn
- And how they resonate across all ages 13+
