Amazon, Netflix and Paramount+ top new subscriber chart in Q2

Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, and Paramount+ were the three most popular services this quarter for new subscribers, closely followed by Apple TV+, according to research outfit Kantar. However, the SAG-AFTRA actors strike and the preceding WGA writers strike in the US are weighing heavily on SVOD strearmers’ ability to attract new users.

The Mandalorian, Ted Lasso, and NCIS were the top viewed SVOD titles this quarter, with Netflix’s Manifest being the most watched title in June.

Kantar’s Entertainment on Demand (EoD) data measured consumer behaviour in the UK, US Australia, Germany, Spain, and France through to June 2023.

Kantar says that cancellations from subscribers are on the rise. Netflix planned subscription cancellations for the next quarter increased year-on-year to 5% from 4% of its total subscription base. However, Disney+ is set to continue attracting subscribers through the strikes thanks to the strength of its back-catalogue and brand.

According to Kantar, Netflix heavily relies on recommendations from friends and family to acquire new subscribers, which accounted for 27% of new Netflix subscriptions this quarter.

Disney+ is emerging as strongest contender during the strikes, says the research outfit, with 41% of subscribers stating they are happy with the amount of original content, second only to Netflix at 47%. Some 23% of Disney+’s new global subscribers in Q2’23 were driven by ‘brand love,’ according to Kantar, with brand loyalty strongest in the US and UK and weakest in terms of its new subscriber impact in Germany.

Kantar found that Netflix’s password sharing crackdown had a less severe impact during the wider implementation in late May than it earlier had in Spain, with churn levels remaining stable, and only a gradual increase in planned cancellation rates globally, currently at 5% as of Q2 2023.

Despite Netflix’s popularity, that 51% of Netflix subscribers also subscribe to Amazon Prime Video, and 41% to Disney+, with only two of the top 10 titles watched in this quarter viewed on Netflix.