The UK SVOD Forecast for May 2020 predicts that the total number of SVOD subscriptions is expected to double between 2019 and the end of 2024, rising from 22.4 million to 44.6 million. The total market revenue is also expected to double from £1.5 billion in 2019 to £3 billion in 2024. According to research conducted by GlobalData, the UK’s solid growth in subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) will continue over the next five years. “While there will be some impact on SVOD adoption from the economic fallout from Covid-19, GlobalData expects this to be outweighed by a combination of lockdown-driven adoption and consumer take-up of new services such as Disney+,” Cooper said. “The market is expected to experience a record-level subscription growth in 2020 on a net additions basis."
Netflix and Amazon Prime Video have typically led The UK’s SVOD market, with Sky’s Now TV in third place. Several high profile launches are predicted to become a significant contributing factor to the market’s growth. Netflix alone added 15.77 million paid customers globally in the most recent quarter, though the company said it expects this to be a spike inspired by the lockdown rather than a trend that will through the end of the pandemic.
In the U.S., Disney+ accumulated approximately 25 million paying subscribers just two months after launching in November 2019, which equates to around 10% SVoD subscriber market share. “The recent launch of Disney+, Apple TV+ and BritBox provides consumers with more choice and will help propel market growth,” said Joel Cooper, Senior Director, Telecoms Market Data and Intelligence at Globaldata. “Disney+’s impact is expected to be particularly pronounced given its brand power, breadth of premium content and low price.”
The analyst also stated that although the ongoing coronavirus pandemic will have an economic impact on subscription services, the increasing number of users who have registered for streaming services such as Netflix during the lockdown will help maintain steady growth. The region is considered a saturation point where opportunities can continue to arise for both, exising players and new entrants.