Why is Paramount+ the best value streaming service in the United States?

Priced at US$6 but with a content value of over US$8.50 a month, Paramount+ is the best value streaming service in the United States, according to the latest Popularity and Critical Rating data from Ampere Analysis. Disney+ is a close second with a content offer able to justify its recent US$3-a-month price increase for the ad-free tier.

Paramount+’s overall content offer is boosted by the breadth of its diverse content catalogue and the popularity of several hit reality TV franchises. In addition, it is supported by Paramount Global’s long-running crime drama series plus a strong mix of licensed movies and TV shows from other suppliers. Ampere’s analysis suggests Paramount+ has plenty of headroom for price rises while still remaining competitive with its US streaming peers based on its content offer.

The findings are contained in Ampere’s latest report, “The value of content to major streaming services in the US,” which uses Ampere’s Popularity and Critical Rating metrics to assess the relative market value of content to the price a streaming service is able to charge viewers for access.

●  VALUING THE CONTRIBUTION OF PARAMOUNT+’S CATALOGUE

The analysis assesses the contribution made to the market value of different content suppliers, both in-house and third-party. Paramount Global productions contribute the most to the value of Paramount+ at 40% of the market value. Licensed classics including “The Brady Bunch” and “Star Trek: The Original Series” pack a punch, generating 28% of the market value, despite contributing just 9% of the titles available on the platform.

In-house crime & thriller titles are the most valuable per title to Paramount+ with classics like “The Godfather,” “NCIS,” and “CSI.” But Paramount Global-produced children & family titles add considerable value to a different, younger audience segment with titles like “Avatar: The Last Airbender” and “iCarly.”

●  DISNEY ALSO OFFERS STRONG VALUE

Disney is the only other major US streamer analyzed that had such a stark price-to-market value disparity. Although pursuing a very different content strategy, Disney is buoyed by its big-name franchise content and intellectual property with Marvel Cinematic Universe titles contributing the most value relative to volume within the content offer. Other Disney-owned content, primarily children’s live action and animation, are the single largest contributor to value, driven by the volume of Disney’s archive. But even Disney+ still derives 30% of the value of its content offer from third-party licensed content.

“As a later entrant to the US streaming market, Paramount+ is maximizing great value as a marketing tool relative to some of its more established peers. Simultaneously, it is also leveraging the substantial catalogue and key reality and entertainment franchises of Paramount Global. Our unique analysis shows the huge importance of franchise content and film and TV based on character IP. It also highlights the ongoing importance of licensed content from third-party suppliers, not just to Paramount+ and Disney+ but to all the streaming services analyzed,”  said Ben French, Analyst at Ampere Analysis.