# Free Streaming Means Fuller Breaks > More streamers are adding free, ad-supported tiers. Dealers get more households to reach and more ads in every break, so cap frequency and rotate short spots. URL: https://brightmattersystems.com/research/free-streaming-means-fuller-breaks/ Published by Bright Matter (Bright Matter LLC). Author: Shannon McNeil, founder. Published 2026-11-05, updated 2026-11-06. ## Key points More streaming services are adding free, ad-supported tiers, which gives a dealer more households to reach and more ads competing beside every spot. Cap how often each household sees your ads each week, rotate several short spots instead of one, and check monthly how much ran on free apps versus premium ones. - Forrester predicts **at least three subscription streamers will launch free tiers in 2027**, with Disney+ the likeliest and Netflix next.[^1] - Tubi, a free streaming service, grew from **18% to 22% of monthly users in 2026**, passing Apple TV at 21%.[^1] - Ad minutes per hour rose **18% across major streamers** from January to August 2026, with Paramount+ running about 9 minutes an hour.[^2] - Ad-supported plans got 14% more expensive across 2025 and 2026, and **subscriber churn held near 4%**.[^3] ## What changed Paid streaming is running out of easy growth. Forrester expects at least three subscription services to add a free, ad-supported tier in 2027, and it names Disney+ as the most likely to go first.[^1] Years of price increases have worn down the affordability that drew people to streaming, and free services are gaining ground. Tubi reached 22% of monthly users this year.[^1] Streamers are also selling more ads inside the plans they already have. Ampere Analysis counted 18% more ad minutes per hour across major platforms between January and August.[^2] Paramount+, Hulu and Disney+ run the heaviest loads at roughly 7.5 to 9 minutes an hour. Netflix, Prime Video and Tubi run about 2.4 to 3.[^3] Viewers are staying put for now, with churn around 4%.[^3] ## What fuller breaks mean for a dealer More free viewing means more households a dealer can reach in its own zip codes. It also means more ads in every break, and more chances for one spot to wear out its welcome. In Omnicom research published by Vibe, 80% of viewers said a bad ad is worse than no ad at all.[^4] Free apps also give a vendor room to stretch a budget. One former dealer-group CMO told Pasch Group that a vendor's $33 CPM buy placed 30% of the streaming spend on Samsung TV Plus, a free service, instead of the premium apps described in the sale.[^5] Free apps can be a sensible buy when the dealer knows the mix and the price reflects it. ## Creative carries more of the load Vibe studied about 17,000 streaming ads over 90 days. Its 15-second spots drove 44% more site visits than 30-second spots, while a 30-second spot converted about 7% better when the same advertiser ran both.[^4] The same report cites Omnicom research that 40% of viewers are likelier to buy from brands running a sequence of ads than from brands repeating one spot.[^4] ## Our take Free tiers will give dealers more households to reach and more ways to reach them. They will also crowd every break, and the store that repeats one spot all month will feel it first. Plan for that now. Cap how often each household sees your ads each week across every app. Rotate a few short spots built for different buyers instead of running one on repeat. Each month, check how much of the budget ran on free apps and how much on premium ones, and at what price. Bright Matter's streaming TV service for dealerships is built this way. We open the ad accounts in your store's name and list every app on the report. ## Sources [^1]: Forrester, “Predictions 2027: Big Media Growth Engines Hit The Limit And Pivot,” September 17, 2026, citing Forrester's Consumer Benchmark Survey 2026. https://www.forrester.com/blogs/predictions-2027-big-media-growth-engines-hit-the-limit-and-pivot/ [^2]: EMARKETER, “Streaming ad loads jump 18%, raising the creative bar,” 2026, citing Ampere Analysis data reported by Business Insider. Paramount+ ran 9.01 ad minutes an hour in August. https://www.emarketer.com/content/streaming-ad-loads-jump-18--raising-creative-bar [^3]: Wayne Friedman, “Streamers Add Ad Minutes: Do Viewers Mind?,” MediaPost, September 14, 2026, citing Ampere Analysis and Guggenheim Securities. https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/417824/streamers-add-ad-minutes-do-viewers-mind.html [^4]: Vibe, “What Wins on Streaming: The CTV Creative Performance Report,” August 11, 2026. Vibe platform data over 90 days, plus Omnicom Media Group's Connected Content study (2026). Vibe sells streaming TV ads. https://www.vibe.co/dtc-lab/ctv-creative-performance-report [^5]: Pasch Group, “The Streaming Accountability Gap,” August 2026, interview with a former dealer-group CMO. All of the report's interviewees were customers of one streaming vendor. https://www.paschgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/PaschGroup_Streaming_Accountability_Gap_2026.pdf --- Bright Matter runs streaming TV (CTV) and Meta ads for car dealerships, in ad accounts opened in the dealership's name. Book a call: https://cal.com/shannon-mcneil Phone: 952-258-8222