More than 30% of hotel guests use casting when staying in hotels, rising to 34% in the US, according to analysis from Nevaya.
The company found that guests enjoyed an average of three casting sessions per stay, for a total of 224 minutes.
The study looked at data from 8,544 rooms across 36 hotels in the US & Europe, with guest casting engagement in the US exceeding Europe across every behavioural metric. US guests cast more frequently, with 3.1 sessions per stay in the US against 2.8 in Europe and watched for longer, with 81 minutes per casting session compared with 69 minutes in Europe.
The data showed that the longer guests stayed at a property, the more time they spent casting. Of the devices used, 81% were Apple and 19% Android.
James Richmond, CEO, Nevaya, said: “This study illustrates what we have known for some time at Nevaya; if you create a frictionless method for guests to cast their content onto a hotel TV, they will embrace it.
“The length of time and number of sessions underscores how popular casting is and what a key role it plays in helping hotels deliver memorable stays for guests. Our customisable user interfaces help hotels to build a relationship with the guest, as well as creating the opportunity to upsell room services, driving ancillary revenue.”
Of the apps cast, YouTube accounted for 39.2% of total watch time, followed by Netflix with 28.3%, Prime Video with 7.7% and Disney+ at 4.1%. The top four apps accounted for 79.2%.
Richmond added: “Hotels know that personalisation is at the heart of guest loyalty and there is no easier way for guests to enjoy personalised content than when they can choose their own. We believe that the more autonomy guests have over their stay, the closer a hotel will be to becoming a true home from home.”
The data was gathered across the citizenM estate operated by Another Star. Thijs Brugman, Managing Director Tech & Data of Another Star said: “Casting has become an indispensable part of a guest’s stay, as this data illustrates.”
“It is crucial that the experience is in line with the citizenM brand values and in Nevaya we have found a product which delivers flawless casting with no friction points. The guest is able to access their content as easily as they would at home.”
Earlier this year, Nevaya’s hotel TV platform was approved with Google Cast on the latest Samsung & LG hospitality TVs, making seamless casting available to more hotel guests around the world.
The announcement followed last year’s partnership with Apple to offer AirPlay in hotels, making it the first cloud hotel TV platform to announce availability to all hotels globally.
Richmond said: “At Nevaya we pride ourselves on being at the forefront of innovation in streaming, specialising in seamless access for both hotels and guests. This study proves that when you have a simple, robust system, casting can become as ubiquitous as wifi – and just as essential.”
