Throughout 2024, the global streaming industry doubled down on key strategic pivots in the quest to maximise streaming profitability.
In the second of our Trend Report series, Digital i has delved into the numbers to shed light on these evolving strategies.
This latest report is split into two parts, with the first, published today, exploring the evolving ad-supported space in Premium SVOD. In this paper, we also examine the increased importance being placed on live events to attract new viewers and the role that YouTube plays in this new streaming landscape.
Follow this link to download the full report and read on for a sample of the insights.
The global ad-supported overview
As the SVOD market matures, ad-supported tiers offered at lower price points will grow in prominence as a strategy to attract and retain subscribers amid the shift in priority from streaming growth to profitability.
As the chart above shows, by placing all Prime Video users on its ad-supported tier by default, Amazon gained immediate advertising reach. It also suggests consumers are willing to view ads in return for a lower price point.
Netflix, Max and Disney+ have a lower proportion of ad-supported accounts, but that number is growing steadily.
Sports drives live viewing
Live programming is a relatively new frontier for global streaming services, but one that is growing increasingly important as these platforms seek to differentiate their offerings and combat subscriber churn.
Netflix has made significant strides into growing its live sports offering, though until the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight in December, live viewing on Netflix was modest.
In the report we review how audiences engaged with sports events such as the fight and Christmas NFL games, including an estimate of how many viewers signed up to Netflix to watch these live events.
The Rise of YouTube
YouTube is by no means a new kid on the block, but the way in which it is now being utilised has repositioned it as a major player whose influence will only grow.
Younger audiences increasingly look to YouTube content creators for more authentic entertainment, often with incredibly low production costs and personalised to their tastes without need for a commissioning process.
In this report, we compare YouTube viewing with Netflix viewing across 18 countries and dive into a case-study into the younger audiences in the UK, revealing how younger UK audiences watch YouTube and how it compares with their Netflix usage.
Download the Strategic Streaming Insight Report
To read the full report, click here.
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