A study was conducted by FreeWheel and Dynata in the second half of 2025, surveying 4,000 respondents about streaming across France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
The vast majority of viewers in Europe have now embraced streaming as their primary way of watching TV. According to the research, 83% of users say they are satisfied with their streaming experience.
The biggest driver of viewer satisfaction is access to the content they want to watch (73%), followed by value for money (63%).
However, advertising remains a point of contention. 47% of respondents say they exclusively watch ad-supported streaming plans, while 49% report deliberately choosing a plan with ads when subscribing to a service.
Despite this acceptance, many viewers say ads negatively affect the viewing experience. Streaming audiences are 10% more likely than traditional TV viewers to find ads intrusive. Among those who find ads disruptive, 39% say they appear at the wrong moment, interrupting on-screen dialogue.
Repetition is another major issue: 55% of viewers say they see the same ads repeatedly, which can lead to ad fatigue. In addition, 72% believe ad relevance has not improved over the past five years. Even so, more than half of viewers say they are open to AI playing a role in determining which ads they see.
