The Rapid Spread of Streaming Services
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The closure of theatres and increased time spent at home due to COVID has caused the popularity of streaming sites to surge in the past two years. After lockdowns were first implemented in 2020, these services—being accessible, affordable, and personalized—became a primary source of entertainment to many. The Wall Street Journal reported that over 16 million people subscribed to Netflix for the first time during this period, and the Canada Media Fund called it a “watershed moment” for Canadian media, experiencing significant viewership gains.
The overall number of subscriptions to streaming sites quickly surpassed 1 billion—a milestone that shocked the online-entertainment and media industry. Although they are still substantial, overall growth-rates of these services have since slowed.
When COVID placed Hollywood on pause, many movies that were originally planned to premier in theatres were redirected straight to streaming sites. Some of these include Enola Holmes (Netflix), Borat (Amazon Prime Video), and even the Broadway musical, Hamilton (Disney+). Industry experts say this process and increase in available content contributed to the enhanced appeal of streaming services at the time.
Netflix, the most dominant streaming service in the industry, had especially benefited from this market boom. The streaming site attracted twice as many new subscribers as they had anticipated in 2020. Netflix’s abrupt influx of users, and continuous release of original hits, including Outerbanks, had launched the company to great heights during the COVID year.
Unfortunately, Netflix would be impacted just as much by the pandemic’s ease. As COVID restrictions loosened at the start of 2021, the streaming site’s growth suffered dramatically. The number of Netflix subscribers increased by 4 million in the first 3 months of the year—their smallest gain in that time-frame in 4 years. They predict that they will continue to grow moderately for the remainder of 2021.
Meanwhile, the streaming service Disney+ has grown both during the first lockdown, as well as following it. The site exceeded 100 million subscribers after only 2 years of operating. With the help of the COVID boom, they were able to reach their goal of 60-90 million users 4 years earlier than expected. The platform continues to release original, exclusive content featuring much-loved characters, such as Loki, Wanda Maximoff, and Cruella de Vil, sustaining its rapid growth.
This swell of demand for video streaming services has made the market increasingly competitive. Similar to Disney+, companies have begun to launch their own platforms instead of streaming their original TV shows and films on existing ones. Experts say this may introduce the need for viewers to subscribe to multiple services, as the range of content on each of them will narrow. Smaller streaming services were given an opportunity to strengthen their consumer-base amidst the pandemic’s market boom. The rise of sites, such as HBO Max and Youtube TV, has diluted the value proposition of those who previously stood alone in the industry. Concerns regarding the longevity of the services have arisen due to signs of market saturation.
A survey conducted by the United Talents Agency reports that 67 per cent of one-thousand US participants plan to spend more time consuming entertainment after the pandemic than they did prior to it. Their findings imply that despite the ease of restrictions, the viewing patterns that consumers developed during 2020 will likely remain consistent. Subsequently, the success of streaming services during the pandemic is predicted to continue well-after COVID.