On The Rock
Greetings and Happy Sunday!
This week has seen significant activity in media and the streaming world. Let's dive in and analyze the latest trends.
Streaming Wars: The Sports Battleground
It's no secret that live sports are a major draw for cable and satellite packages. But the winds of change are blowing, and streaming giants are making their play.
Antenna Research's findings are telling – streaming sports are not only adding subscribers, but are also keeping them hooked. Paramount+ (PARA 0.00%↑) saw a whopping 3.4m signups thanks to Super Bowl LVIII, and Peacock added 3m due to its AFC Wild Card Game broadcast. The real surprise is the high retention rates, suggesting that fans are finding value in these options.
Peacock's (CMCSA 0.00%↑ ) new Olympic streaming features are a masterstroke. 'Live Actions' and 'Discovery Multiview' offer a level of control and personalization that traditional broadcasts can't match. It's a clear strategy to lure viewers away from cable.
YouTube's (GOOG 0.00%↑ ) introduction of 'Multiview' for iOS and their recent TV interface upgrades demonstrate their continued investment in live sports streaming. They're also determined not to be left behind in this race.
Charter's (CHTR 0.00%↑ ) decision to offer free streaming of Dodgers games for customers with both internet and mobile subscriptions is a risk. It's a concession to the cord-cutting crowd, but one that aims to lock viewers into their broader ecosystem.
The Streaming Divide: Habits and Loyalties
Inscape's TV Market Trends Report paints a fascinating picture of our viewing habits:
Streaming now accounts for a staggering 58% of average TV viewing time.
Nearly 66% of streaming viewers never watch traditional cable, satellite, or over-the-air channels. This is a clear indication of the ongoing generational shift.
Traditional TV still reigns supreme for sports and news, suggesting there's room for coexistence, at least for now.
The rise of "quiet quitters"–those drastically reducing their cable usage without fully cutting the cord–reveals a growing dissatisfaction with the old model.
55% of smart TV viewers solely streamed content last quarter.
Password Sharing: A Crackdown with Results
Leichtman Research Group's report shows that only 10% of Netflix (NFLX 0.00%↑) users are still borrowing the service, down from 15% in 2022. This suggests that Netflix's password-sharing crackdown is having an impact. Younger viewers are more likely to use someone else’s account, highlighting the ongoing affordability challenge for streaming services.
Taylor Swift Film Sets New Music Streaming Record
Taylor Swift's "The Eras Tour" movie shattered Disney+ (DIS 0.00%↑) records, attracting 4.6m views in just three days and becoming the platform's most-watched music film ever. Fans clocked in an impressive 16.2m hours of the 3.5-hour concert film. Significantly, these figures outpace those of other Disney+ movie premieres, which typically track five days of viewing, further highlighting the devoted fanbase and the undeniable appeal of the superstar.
