Each year high-speed internet connection becomes accessible to more and more people. PCs and laptops are also becoming more accessible and affordable. While a high-end gaming computer may still have sky-high prices, a decent computer that is much more than capable of streaming videos is available for considerably affordable prices. OTT services are aware of these facts pushing forward to seize the power of the long-time king that is the broadcast TV. And apparently, they will catch up by the end of 2023 according to a report published by Rethink Technology Research
Today, there are 146.5 million streaming video subscribers in the U.S. alone and that number is predicted to rise up to 236.6 million by the end of 2023.
Netflix seems to be the leader when it comes to market share. In the U.S. it has 44% of all the subscribers.
But OTT and SVOD services’ dominion seems to vary according to geography. In Asian markets like China, viewers tend to prefer streaming services supported by ads, which manifests itself with a drop in subscription-based video streaming services. Nevertheless, China is the biggest market in Asia and expected to have 245 million SVOD subscribers, totaling 72% of audiences in the region.
But the numbers predict that the competition between SVOD and OTT services will heat up. After the acquisition by AT&T, Warner Media streaming service is expected to reach 29.6 million homes in the U.S. by its freemium strategy.
Another giant, Disney, however, is expected to be confined to the U.S market while struggling in foreign markets.
Netflix looks like it will still have dominance over the big markets like China, U.S., and Europe but it will claim a lesser part of the market. In the U.S. Netflix’s market share is predicted to drop to 31% by 2023. Globally, it’s predicted that Netflix will have 26% of the total number of 743 million streaming viewers.
Traditional TV is not dead yet but it’s obvious that broadcast media has to innovate itself to stay on the top. In a separate report, Grand View Research forecasts that the global streaming market will be worth $124.6 billion by 2025. This growth is obviously driven by the natural growth of the global economy, more accessible equipment and high-speed internet while some of this growth seems to be fueled by the share of viewers shifting from traditional TV to OTT and SVOD services.
