The holiday TV season is upon us, and a survey from Whip Media looks at US viewers’ attitudes and behaviours toward made-for-TV holiday movies as networks and streamers are rolling out their seasonal titles.
There are hundreds of new Christmas movies premiering in 2022 — and consumers of holiday movie content have a strong appetite for them. Slightly more than half of the respondents (53 per cent) prioritise watching holiday content during the season, according to the survey.
The key findings include:
Hallmark, Netflix, Lifetime, Disney+ and Hulu were ranked the top-of-mind providers for seasonal titles.
Viewers of holiday fare like to mix old and new movies. A strong majority (74 per cent) report watching both new and previously released made-for-TV holiday movies. Nearly one-fifth (17 per cent) of holiday TV movie viewers focus on new releases only.
More than half of the respondents said they discovered new holiday movies through ads or trailers (52 per cent) and/or recommendations from a streaming service or device (51 per cent). Nearly half (47 per cent) also indicated the importance of social media in finding out about new holiday releases.
The premise/storyline (68 per cent) and actors/cast (61 per cent) were rated as the top reasons for deciding to watch holiday movies, but having access to the network/platform was also important to 58 per cent of respondents.
71 per cent of the respondents indicated they regularly watch these titles alone, with 51 per cent saying they will often watch with their families. A little more than a quarter (28 per cent) watch with their partner.
The Whip Media survey is based on responses from 3,214 US-based users of TV Time who indicated they are viewers of holiday films. The survey was conducted from November 9-10, 2022. The full survey results can be downloaded here.
