Turning TV Power-ons into Payoffs for Your Hotel

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The in-room TV isn’t a legacy amenity that’s lost relevance. It has actually picked up more jobs.

Including driving ancillary revenue for you—if you know how to use guest patterns to your advantage.

When guests are using the TV

You may wonder if guests actually turn on the TV anymore.

They do. A lot.

Looking at data from 1.1 million rooms in more than 5,000 hotels, we see that on average, 73% of guests watch TV for 4 hours a day.

This statistic holds true from economy to luxury, from sprawling casino to cozy boutique, from urban center to remote resort.

Digging in some more, we see TV power-ons peak at around 9 a.m., with 4 p.m. and 10 p.m. being the next most common times guests turn on the TV.

If you think about your stay in a hotel, this pattern makes sense: You turn the TV on in the morning while you’re getting ready, then leave to go about your day. When you get back from your meetings or sightseeing, you turn it on again as you’re getting ready for dinner, then once again when you’re in for the night and ready to relax.

When we look at purchases made on the TV, most late checkouts are purchased between 6 a.m. and noon, which is 4x more than any time outside that window. And the vast majority of VOD purchases happen in the evening hours, when guests are settling in for a hotel movie night.

How guests are using the TV

The TV is a lean-back experience where guests want to relax and be entertained, maybe even more so than at home since their room is an oasis during their travels.

And just like at home, TV channels are important, but so are their own subscriptions and on-demand movies.

For example, we see the highest casting activity at extended-stay properties and at hotels near medical centers, where guests are staying longer and looking for the comfort of their own routine.

Other examples of common trends we see include:

• Streaming use goes up when there’s a storm outside

• Viewership of holiday movies skyrockets during December

• A music-themed hotel sees high usage of music channels

• Rentals of original movies increase when sequels hit theaters

• Whether it’s on a linear channel or app, everyone’s glued to the TV when there’s a big game on

What you should be doing with the TV

So why does all this matter to you? Because when you understand when and how guests use the TV, you can develop a more effective marketing strategy to increase ancillary revenue for your property.

For example, since we know most late checkouts are purchased between 6 a.m. and noon, there’s a real moment for that message to resonate and get you some extra dollars, while pushing it outside that window won’t be as effective.

And since you know TV power-ons spike in the late afternoon, that’s a great time to promote your restaurant and any specials you’re running. You catch a guest trying to decide where to eat and sway them to stay on property.

Even small on-screen changes that make it easier for guests to find what they want can impact your bottom line.

With promotions, we consistently see that a generic message like “Our bar is open” does little, but a specific call-to-action like “BOGO apps 5–7 p.m. today” with a clean graphic to catch their eye drives strong engagement and on-prem spending. However, engagement tapers soon after launch of the promotion, meaning it needs a fresh message and push each time instead of a one-and-done placement.

With one partner, we renamed the generic “Hotel Directory” listing to specific titles like “Hotel Services,” “Spa,” and “Dining” to catch more guests who scan instead of read. This lifted visibility, getting 4x as much engagement and leading to more bookings and reservations.

With another property, video on demand content, labeled “Movies,” was listed sixth on their TV menu. When we relabeled it “On Demand” and moved it to the top of the menu, there was 10% more use, meaning more revenue share for the hotel with every rental.  

When to shift your TV strategy (Hint: Now)

Your in-room TVs earn attention every single day—the data shows exactly when and how.

This makes it one of the few guest touchpoints where you don’t have to guess what’s going to have an impact. Start treating these usage patterns as targeting signals. Many of these tactics don’t require new content or hardware, just clearer direction, so you can start making changes today.

When you rethink how the TV can work for you, it stops being a passive cost center and starts pulling its weight as an irresistible amenity to your guests, and an effective marketing channel for your property.

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