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Netflix cut its cheapest ad-free plan, pushing cost-conscious viewers toward its ad tier. Netflix also restructured its Microsoft ad partnership and is lowering ad prices. YouTube has made several moves to limit ad blockers. Keep in mind, things could change. With the boost of fall sports, linear TV could see a month-over-month rise in September.

Why it matters: Cost-conscious consumers are thirsty for niche content and more affordable options, especially as major streamers like Disney raise prices for their subscription-based services.

So meanwhile, they're very cleverly leaking that in this fight with Spectrum, Hulu's subscription numbers have increased according to their...

They're free, so that's a huge advantage over the subscription services, over the number of people they can reach, and they have a very esoteric library of shows that the others are a little bit more standardized.

Why it’s important: Ad formats that feel less disruptive to the viewing experience can help ease consumers into higher subscription prices, which Disney announced this month. Ad-supported tiers on Disney+ and Hulu will increase by $2 per month starting in October.

Millennials and Gen Zers, in particular, are purchasing subscriptions and memberships for primary care services and prescription medications. Younger consumers value the convenience of accessing prescription medication online, as 41.8% of millennials and 35.4% of Gen Zers purchased a subscription or membership in order to do so. Trust in providers and pharmacists breeds patient loyalty.

Interesting to note, viewers tend to pay more attention to ads on paid subscription-based apps. So think YouTube TV, Fubo, and Sling TV, and more attention on ad-free and ad-supported tiers of hybrids, like Hulu, HBO Max, Paramount+. They pay more attention to ads on those platforms than to ads on free ad-supported streamers or FAST or smart TV channels on FAST, so things like Roku Channel or Tubi.

This article is part of Ä¢¹½AV’s client-only subscription Briefings—daily newsletters authored by industry analysts who are experts in marketing, advertising, media, and tech trends. To help you finish 2024 strong and start 2025 off on the right foot, articles like this one—delivering the latest news and insights—are completely free through January 31, 2025.

The retailer just announced it would test a grocery subscription add-on for Prime members, giving shoppers access to unlimited free grocery delivery on orders of $35 or more from Whole Foods Market and Amazon Fresh. It has also expanded Amazon Fresh grocery delivery and pickup to non-Prime members across the US.

Starting today, those legacy blue marks are disappearing as the battered platform looks for new revenue streams and offers them through Twitter Blue subscriptions. This week, CEO Elon Musk again raised concerns about misinformation and fairness when he announced that only verified profiles will appear on the "For You" feed.

One is really strong growth among video, and that's digital video advertising that's driven by growth in CTV and over the top streaming services that are adding at a pretty high clip advertising. So most recent is Amazon Prime video. They added advertising, but most of these formerly subscription services are adding advertising.

Netflix consistently ranks among Gen Z’s favorite subscription services. Its 63.3% penetration rate among Gen Z in 2023 is lower than YouTube’s, likely due to the paywall, but Gen Z will still make up over a quarter of the platform’s user base. Broken down by age, Netflix penetration is greater among Gen Z adults (ages 18 to 24) than teens (ages 12 to 17). To view the full forecast, click here.

Netflix relies more on ad-free viewers than any comparable streaming service does. Just 2 in 10 US Netflix subscribers see ads, per Q1 2024 Hub Research data. Our forecast shows penetration of US Netflix ad-supported viewers may be even lower, at 7.5%. But that figure is rising as more viewers trade down to its ad-supported tier or create new subscriptions at a lower cost.

So, you're going to have your NFL, your OTT in general, you're going to have your Prime Video, and you're going to have your Freevee, and your FAST Channels, so all of those people are basically contributing to this CTV portion or drawing from that CTV portion. So, that's basically how I look at it. It's all about retail media.

And then on the streaming side, although streaming viewership is on the rise, there are more ad-free players in that space. So the ad surface area that advertisers have to work with on streaming is lower. So overall TV, converge TV, including linear and CTV as a reach medium, that power is dwindling.

It just makes sense when there's lighter ad loads in streaming and more viewers are ad free. If you transition from linear to streaming, you're not going to get the same ad output. But that's kind of projecting based off of where ad loads are now four years. The ad loads will probably be a little higher in streaming, but you're still going to see erosion just maybe not 25% over four years.

Nonpremium users, already contending with unskippable ads, may feel further incentivized to opt for Premium subscriptions or explore ad-blocking options. As more platforms adopt similar formats, the challenge for YouTube will be balancing ad revenues with user satisfaction—something it hasn’t quite mastered yet.

Entertainment includes amusement and recreation, box office, film, music, OTT video platforms, sporting events and ticketing, and video games (excluding video game hardware).

Although the main revenue strategy looks headed toward subscriptions, they may also try to capture some advertising dollars. Google and Apple compete to control the car ecosystem. Android Auto struggles to keep up with Apple CarPlay.

As developers seek to add AAA (high production value) games and increase the lifespan of their games, they’ve added more in-app buying options for subscriptions, game currency, and premium content. In 2023, US mobile games will generate over $20 billion in in-app purchases (IAPs). Globally, mobile games earn half of all game revenues per year, according to Newzoo estimates.