蘑菇AV

FAST viewership skyrocketed from 2019 to 2021. Now that these services are relatively mainstream, growth has settled down. But FAST remains one of the top-growing subcategories within the OTT ecosystem.

Eight in 10 US Amazon Prime Video subscribers will be ad-supported this year, according to our February 2024 forecast.

Latin America鈥檚 digital video audience will be the second largest in the world this year. As greater adoption of paid and ad-supported streaming services takes hold, the region will remain a key market for new user growth on the international stage. Here are our latest forecasts.

Ad-supported streaming and live sports are accelerating pay TV鈥檚 decline: The largest pay TV providers lost 5 million subscribers in 2023, while SVOD鈥檚 market share grew.

DoorDash is the latest delivery platform to turn to streaming to boost membership sign-ups: The company will offer DashPass subscribers free access to Max鈥檚 ad-supported tier in a bid to boost sign-ups and grow sales.

Netflix has already introduced an ad-supported tier in the UK. Disney+ will follow closely behind, with a similar option likely in early 2023. Meanwhile, the TV manufacturers that have skin in this game have been reporting increasing engagement with ad-supported options鈥攖hough their findings might be considered somewhat self-serving.

Ad industry spending is crawling out of a dark period: The US ad market grew 2.5% in May, the first increase in 11 months.

Thanks to Hulu and ad-supported tiers, Disney streaming profits: The company solidified its position as a streaming ad leader with a strong Q3.

Ad-supported options from the likes of Netflix and Disney+ are bolstering the open web, making premium ad space available to more advertisers. Go further: Consult our US Programmatic Forecast.

Behind the curve: Despite being launched in late 2022, Netflix鈥檚 ad-supported tier has struggled to compete with newer competitors, namely Amazon Prime Video. Prime Video launched its ad-supported tier this year and is already set to become a major competitor in the subscription, ad-supported video race.

32% of US adults are watching subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services less because they are watching more on free streaming services, per a July 2023 Aluma Insights survey. For 34% of US adults, viewing behaviors across streaming services haven鈥檛 changed as a result of free streaming services.

Verna said that Disney+ and Netflix, which have just recently launched ad-supported tiers, will both be short of a billion dollars in CTV ad revenues this year.

Deloitte鈥檚 research also found millennials are more likely than any other generation to make a change in their entertainment subscription habits due to the economy鈥�31% claimed to have switched to a free ad-supported platform from a paid service.

Average CPMs across major US streaming services are trending downward as Netflix and Disney+ lower the rates they solicited soon after launching ad-supported tiers in late 2022.

In comparison, time spent with connected TV (CTV) and subscription over-the-top (sub OTT) is still growing. This year, daily social time among users will grow at less than half 2022鈥檚 rate. The days of explosive gains for social video are in the past.

Most subscription streaming services offer ad-free and ad-supported plans. After Amazon Prime Video introduced its ad plan in January, Apple TV+ became the biggest advertising holdout among streamers. Advertising holdouts have gradually accepted commercial breaks in their programming.

But there are a lot of players that are coming into the ad-supported space,鈥� said Verna. Disney+ and Netflix both launched ad-supported tiers last year. Verna expects those platforms to be major players, but it will take several years before they build up their ad businesses.

On today's episode, we discuss what to make of Meta's new Threads app, whether the internet is becoming more like TikTok, the argument against "click to cancel," ad-supported versus ad-free video streaming, how shipping works, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our forecasting writer Ethan Cramer-Flood and analysts Zach Goldner, and Evelyn Mitchell-Wolf.

Ad spend across digital channels has been mixed so far this year, with spend on social networks slowing and connected TV spend boosted by new ad-supported subscription tiers. Meanwhile, retail media is diversifying at a rapid rate as nonendemic retailers get in the game

Netflix phases out Basic plan amid ad-supported regrets: The company鈥檚 approach to lifting ad-tier subs puts it far behind Amazon.

Netflix鈥檚 US ad revenues per ad-supported viewer will fall from $70.44 this year to $59.67 by 2026, according to our forecast.

Amazon Prime Video ads launched today, defaulting Amazon鈥檚 163.3 million US viewers into its ad-supported tier unless they pay a premium to opt out. This is good news for Amazon鈥檚 $44.26 billion dollar retail US media business. But who could this move hurt?

On today's podcast episode, we discuss who's leading the ad-supported vs. ad-free video streaming race, how much money is coming from both avenues, and how streaming will differ from (and look the same as) cable in a few years. Tune in to the discussion with our analyst Ross Benes.