Apple TV+ achieved the highest share of new subscribers in the UK

In the UK, Apple TV+ achieved the highest share of new subscribers thanks to a winning strategy of free trials powered by the success of British shows “Slow Horses” and “Ted Lasso” to attract new users. In fact, according to data from Kantar, Apple TV+ seized the top spot from Disney+ in new SVOD subscriptions during the fourth quarter of 23, commanding an impressive 18% share.

In its “Entertainment on Demand” study, conducted from October to December 2023, Kantar discovered that 39% of new subscribers of Apple TV+ cited free trials as a significant factor for using the service. Subscribers rate the quality of content on Apple TV+ higher than any other major service. Prime Video took second spot in share of new subscriptions in Q4 with a 16% share. Moreover, the data reveals that 19.8 million British households have at least one paid subscription video on-demand streaming service in their household, flat versus the third quarter of 2023.

“The remarkable surge in Apple TV+ subscriptions during the fourth quarter of 2023 underscores the undeniable appeal of British TV shows which had strong impact on Apple TV+’s new subscriber figures. ‘Slow Horses’ and ‘Ted Lasso’ drove almost 30% of new subscribers, exemplifying Apple TV+’s commitment to delivering top-notch content that resonates with regional audiences,”  said Dominic Sunnebo, Global Insight Director, Worldpanel Division at Kantar.

●  THE AUSTRALIAN MARKET

Kantar Worldpanel’s “Entertainment on Demand” also provided data on the Australian video streaming market, which uncovered that, bewteen October and December of 2023, the number of Australian households subscribing to at least one video streaming service increased by 140,000 from the third quarter – a rise of +2%.

Almost three quarters of households (74%, a total of 7.4 million) now have at least one VOD service, with the majority (7.1 million) accessing a paid video streaming subscription service. Advertising-based video on-demand (AVOD) services increased again, up +100,000 households compared to the third quarter to reach 1.1 million.

At the same time, the report noted that free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) is the fastest growing streaming segment, albeit from a low base, with a net increase of 300,000 households and penetration reaching 7.2% of all households. Aussie households also upped their usage of broadcast video on-demand (BVOD) services in the fourth quarter, with 4.5 million now watching BVOD at least once a week.

Regarding platforms, Prime Video, Paramount+, Binge, Apple TV+, and Britbox all achieved strong subscriber growth in the fourth quarter. Netflix, aided by the sound performance of its ad-supported tier, rebounded to post a quarter-on-quarter growth of +2% in subscribers, after successive quarterly declines. Moreover, Prime Video, Binge and Paramount+ emerged as the leaders in attracting new subscribers during the fourth quarter, with Black Friday promotions instrumental in bumping share for the latter two players.