[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] This year, the number of subscribers to online video streaming services (OTT) in the United States increased by more than 50% compared to the previous year. It is interpreted that the lockdown measures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused people to spend more time at home, influenced the growth in OTT subscribers.
On the 30th (local time), the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported this after analyzing data from market research firms MoffettNathanson LLC and HarrisX.
Apple's 'Apple TV+' in November last year, Walt Disney's 'Disney+', AT&T's 'HBO Max' in May this year, and Comcast's 'Peacock' in July were launched consecutively, but rather than taking subscribers away from the leading company Netflix, all saw an increase in subscribers.
According to media research firm Kagan, American households currently subscribe to an average of 3.1 streaming services, and about three-quarters of households subscribe to at least one service.
However, WSJ explained that according to Nielsen's survey, Netflix still overwhelmingly dominates the market, as all of the most-watched programs on a weekly basis since July were on Netflix.
This is analyzed to be because Netflix has secured many original contents, while latecomers have faced difficulties producing new content due to the impact of COVID-19.
In response, WarnerMedia, the parent company of HBO Max, is planning to release all movies distributed next year simultaneously in theaters and online, among other strategies, as latecomers are also preparing countermeasures.
While streaming service providers have grown together, WSJ reported that the traditional paid TV market such as satellite and cable TV is shrinking, with more than 10,000 subscribers lost each quarter.
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