Streaming Video Consumer Trends Q4 2018 Reaching The Post-Peak Attention Economy

The 20,000 Foot View:  With streaming video subscriptions surpassing that of pay-TV in            2018, traditional linear providers are under growing pressure to better understand consumer consumption habits. Pay-TV failed to entice the younger audience to engage with its services as the digital landscape is successfully catering to their consumption needs. Over            accounted for            of total pay-TV subscribers in            2018. This compares to subscription video on demand (SVOD) services where over            only account for            of total subscribers. This failure to appeal to younger audiences resulted in pay-TV subscriptions falling five points behind SVOD, at            penetration, in            2018.            also illustrated an inflection point for digital and streaming services. Weekly active usage (WAU) for key apps and services have declined throughout 2018, which illustrates that the ceiling of the peak attention economy is nearing. With finite time and resources at their disposal, consumers are forced to specialise on select services. This means less time is spent on mainstream social and streaming services. Between            and            2018, Facebook’s WAU declined from            to            while YouTube’s went from            to           

Key Findings

• Pay-TV subscriptions            fell five points behind household            subscriptions in            2018
• YouTube’s WAU            four points year-on-year (YoY) from                       2017 to            in            2018
• Binge watching            video subscribers declined from            in            to            in            2018
• Demographic distribution            video subscribers remained largely unchanged            2018 as SVOD services fail            acquire the older and digitally            audience
• Peak attention            dynamics are more evident, with            declining seven points YoY to            and nearly all social and            apps declining in            2018
• Video subscribers            three or more digital subscriptions            from            to            between            and            2018
• WAU for            Up TV peaks in the            at            in            2018,            points higher            in the US and Canada
• At            Hulu            the leading local SVOD in            of WAU in the US,            the UK’s Now TV, Canada’s            TV and Australia’s Stan record            of                       and            respectively
           of SVOD subscribers are aged between            years old in            2018, up from            in           
• Catch Up            WAU declined three points YoY                       in            2017 to            in            2018

Companies and brands mentioned in this report: Amazon Prime Music, Amazon Prime Video, Apple, AT&T, BBC, BBC iPlayer, Bravo, Comcast, Crave TV, DAZN, DirecTV, DirecTV Now, Dish Network, Disney, Disney+, EPL, Facebook, Foxtel, Hulu, Illico.tv, iView, MLB, NBA, Netflix, NFL, Now TV, Stan, Tencent, TenPlay, UEFA Champions League, Verizon, YouTube