Providing market intelligence for more than 35 years

In The News

Prime Video Continues to Best Netflix in US Subscriptions; 89% of Broadband Households Are Streaming

New data revealed by Parks Associates shows that while Netflix may be the top global streaming platform, it doesn’t have the most subscribers of any domestic service.

  • New data from Parks Associates estimates Prime Video has more domestic subscribers than Netflix.
  • Parks’ numbers also show that YouTube Premium has cracked the top 10 of streaming services for the first time.
  • Eighty-nine percent of broadband homes now have at least one streaming service, and 29% of homes have eight services or more.

Despite Netflix’s lofty subscriber numbers, the market intelligence firm Parks Associates says it’s not number one in the U.S. in terms of customers. That title goes to Amazon’s Prime Video, which does not publicly report its own subscriber tally. Nevertheless, Parks estimates that it has more than 77.32M customers than Netflix has in the United States, no doubt aided by the fact that Amazon Prime subscribers get Prime Video included in their subscription.

Another interesting piece of information from the Parks report is the fact that YouTube Premium is now in the top 10 of U.S. streaming platforms in terms of subscribers, beating out services like MGM+, AMC+, and others. YouTube has always been popular in among American audiences, but the fact that so many users are willing to pay to skip ads on the service shows their commitment to using it as a primary source of entertainment.

Parks’ data also shows that ad-supported streaming platforms are continuing to gather steam. Eighty-nine percent of households with internet subscribe to at least one streaming service, and 29% are subscribed to eight over-the-top (OTT) services or more.

But how is that possible in an era where streaming costs continue to rise and budgets are shrinking? The numbers from Parks show that 41% of broadband-equipped households have watched an ad-supported video-on-demand (AVOD) service in the past 30 days. The use of free streaming platforms like Pluto TV and The Roku Channel are clearly helping customers fill in their entertainment gaps while saving money.

“The market for subscription services is saturated, and consumers continue to experiment with ad-supported services as they evaluate their budgets,” said Eric Sorensen, Director of the Streaming Video Tracker at Parks Associates.

From the article, "Prime Video Continues to Best Netflix in US Subscriptions; 89% of Broadband Households Are Streaming" by David Satin

Previously In The News

Walmart buys TV portal to nowhere

As streaming services bundle together, monopolizing the delivery of shows – whether it’s the TV unit or the wifi - becomes more important, too. Vizio, with over 10% of television sales market share, i...

Walmart confirms $2.3 billion Vizio deal; Walmart Connect to benefit

The Walmart Vizio deal comes as competitor Roku has a 25% share of the connected TV market, based on smart TV operating systems in use, according to Parks Associates. Amazon makes up 17% of the market...

Walmart isn’t buying Vizio for its hardware. It wants the TV maker’s ad business

“This is a good move by Walmart,” says Elizabeth Parks, president of the market research firm Parks Associates. “It sets the company in a position to compete with Amazon in new ways.” “Walmart isn’...

Walmart buying TV-brand Vizio for its ad-fueling customer data

According to a spokesperson for Parks Associate that Ars Technica spoke with, Vizio has 12 percent of connected TV OS market share. WSJ reported last week that Roku OS has more market share at 25 perc...