New SVOD subscribers favour Amazon Prime, Paramount+ for content in Q4: Kantar
Amazon Prime Video and Paramount+ led the way in attracting new subscribers among Subscription Video On Demand (SVOD) services, accounting for 20 per cent and 16 per cent of new accounts created in the fourth quarter of 2022 respectively, according to Kantar.
Data from Kantar’s Entertainment on Demand Study found that, for Prime Video, new subscriptions are largely powered by content, for example Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power and The Boys. However, the variety of TV series or classic films is also increasingly a driver for sign-ups.
Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power
For Paramount+, the new subscription propeller was exclusive content such as Tulsa King, which accounted for 13% of new customers drawn to the platform. Additionally, the Black Friday sale resulted in the platform gaining yearly subscribers (25% of total new customers) and reduced churn risks.
In the latest quarter between October and December 2022, 6.11 million or 61 per cent of Australian households subscribed to at least one video streaming service. While it was a decline of 38,000 households quarter on quarter, it’s softer than the 180,000 decline in Q3.
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While a total of one million new subscription services were taken out, the cancellation rates remained high, with over 1.3 million SVOD services cancelled in Q4.
An increasing number of households started to trim subscription portfolios by not replacing cut services, which put the average number of SVOD services owned per household at 3.4. This trend, though, is likely to continue as 25% of SVOD-subscribed households plan to cancel a service in the next three months.
Source: Netflix
In terms of the most-enjoyed title, Wednesday on Netflix took the spot over other popular shows including The White Lotus on Binge, which sat at the fifth spot on the list. 12% of all SVOD subscribers stated Wednesday as their favourite show.
For ad-supported tiers, 16 per cent of Netflix’s new subscriptions in the quarter were the Basic with Ads plan, while 7% of those who remained subscribed since Q3 2022 downgraded to the ad-supported tier.
The streaming giant recently released its fourth-quarter earnings, where it boasted significant subscriber growth despite a slight dip in revenue.
International SVOD companies are recently required to meet local content quotas under a new cultural policy. With the requirement kicking in no later than July 2024, its impact on SVOD subscriber shares remains to be seen.
