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The Paradox of Choice and The Great Rebundling

Consumers say they love choice. In media, choices have exploded over the past five years. There are hundreds of subscription options. The dream of buying only what you want is here. But now that we are living that dream, how good is it?

We can buy a big bundle – or not. We can buy one, two or ten streaming services. We can cancel at any time. Media companies are competing like never before to create great movies and shows so that you will buy their streaming service. All good for consumers. But all of this choice comes at a cost. As the psychologist Barry Schwartz wrote in his book The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less, more choice can create “anxiety, stress, dissatisfaction – even clinical depression.” He writes that with more choice, expectations are raised and there are more opportunities to miss opportunities, make mistakes, and feel regret. We end up being less happy than we were when there were fewer choices.

A big part of the logic for consumers behind “The Great Rebundling” as some in the media business call it, is that it simplifies things. Prepackaged bundles of streaming services make the choice for you. Pick the one that best serves you and stick with it. The problem now there is too little choice; there aren’t many preformed bundles. Media companies have to make deals with each other to create these bundles. Only a few have come together.

The result is that people are making their own bundle, whether they are thinking of it that way or not. They’re just sometimes hard to manage. We see a special offer that we’ve missed. And we’ve subscribed to a streaming service to watch one show and have forgotten to cancel. We’re now feeling some level of anxiety and regret. We hope by helping you get better deals and keep track of your subscriptions, you will be able to sit back, and relax, and watch the incredible content that’s available with a few clicks of your remote.