Hybrid VOD on the up in Sweden

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Around 250,000 homes in Sweden are currently taking ad-supported SVOD services, or hybrid video-on-demand (HVOD) services, with 60,000 additions recorded in the first quarter, according to local research outfit Mediavision.

According to Mediavision, 65% of households in Sweden have a paid streaming video service, a level that is more or less stable, with little growth.

HVOD services are offered in the market currently by Disney+, TV4 Play+, Discovery+, and SkyShowtime.

Nordic player Viaplay is expected to follow soon, while Warner Bros. Discovery is expected to launch an ad-supported version of Max later this year.

Neither Netflix nor Amazon Prime Video have unveiled plans for ad-supported launches in Sweden as of yet.

“Hybrid subscriptions are growing, and we believe this trend will continue in the years to come. A lower cost allows households to subscribe to more services. There are strong indications that advertising will also become a way to finance increasingly expensive content, such as sports. In many ways, this is a return to the conditions that existed before the streaming services were launched over ten years ago,” said Marie Nilsson, CEO of Mediavision

Separately, Mediavision has calculated that three million homes across the Nordic markets currently share SVOD streaming accounts, a practice that Viaplay has stated it intends to crack down on as it focuses on profitability.

Mediavision said that measures implemented by paid-for streaming companies so far by streaming providers had resulted in a 10% reduction in credential sharing since spring last year.

Viaplay has also said it aims to introduce additional measures to crack down on password sharing later this year.