There were quite a few big factors in 2020 that led to an increase in viewing of streaming services. There was the pandemic, which kept more people at home for a lot more time, while also closing movie theaters and shutting down other venues for entertainment. In addition, there were suddenly more of them.

Therefore, the average number of streaming services subscribed to by streaming households has increased, to around seven—a number that was only five in April of 2020.

That’s according to statistics released this week by research firm NPD Group, which has released the TV Switching Study. The services include both subscription video on demand and free services.

The survey also found that free streaming services gained popularity throughout the year, grew from  39 percent of overall viewers in April to 47 percent in October, “as consumers leverage these offerings to supplement SVOD services.”

The incumbent subscription streaming services, including Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime, were joined in late 2019 by Apple TV+ and Disney+, with HBO Max and Peacock joining the fray this year, along with the short-form service Quibi, which had already folded by the fall. In addition, such free and ad-supported services as Pluto TV have continued to gain viewership, with Redbox announcing last week that it was launching a channel of its own.

“By and large, consumers want the ability to customize their viewing experience, bundling both paid and free services that provide them with the content they want, when they want it,” John Buffone, Executive Director, Industry Analyst within NPD’s Connected Intelligence practice, said in the announcement.

“Amidst COVID-related content production challenges, viewers are increasing the number of streaming services they use, as they seek to find content that captures their interest,” Buffone added. “Competition will become an even greater challenge for services. Both now, as viewers try more options and later as production ramps up and each service gets new programming.”

Speaking of competition, there are indications that the streaming audience will become more spread out in the new year. The Comcast and NBC Universal-owned Peacock announced its plans this week for rolling out The Office, which has long streamed on Netflix. All 201 episodes of the popular comedy series will arrive on Peacock on Jan. 1, although only the first two of the series’ nine seasons will be available on Peacock’s free tier.

The rollout was announced to the press in an email from “Dunder Mifflin,” the fictional paper company from that mockumentary show, with the conceit that “Peacock will be streaming the documentary footage that was shot at Dunder Mifflin Scranton between 2005 and 2013.”

Stephen Silver, a technology writer for the National Interest, is a journalist, essayist and film critic, who is also a contributor to Philly Voice, Philadelphia Weekly, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Living Life Fearless, Backstage magazine, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. Follow him on Twitter at @StephenSilver.

Image: Reuters