Amazon was a huge hit on Netflix in the run up to Christmas as the live Premier League and international rugby helped it attract half of the new UK subscribers to streaming services in the last quarter of last year.
There were nearly 1.3m new subscriptions to services such as Netflix, Disney + and Amazon Prime, which include access to Prime Video as well as benefits such as free-to-buy delivery, as Britain turned bored to flow in the highest numbers to stay at the time of the pandemic. .
In the last quarter Amazon attracted 49%, or more than 635,000, of new subscribers to paid streaming services – which also includes Sky’s Now TV, and BritBox from ITV and the BBC – according to the latest research from data company Kantar. That number was almost three times the number of new subscribers to its nearest competitor, Netflix, which gave 17%. Among the drawers in the autumn were the Crown and the Queen’s Gambit in the Christmas quarter.
Amazon Prime acquired nearly half of new UK subscriptions to stream video-on-demand services in the last quarter of 2020
Amazon’s strategy of offering live sports – a Netflix-rejected genre – coupled with general entertainment was a winner as the sales giant looked to increase membership to Amazon Prime in prime season Christmas sale. Amazon broadcast 20 live matches in the Premier League, the second of three seasons under the current contract, as well as the Autumn Cup rugby tournament which featured the home nations and teams from Fiji, France , Italy and Georgia. The popular TV series The Boys and the Borat followed a surge in subscribers.
“In the fourth quarter 1.3 million British homes signed up for new video streaming memberships, and Prime Video Amazon captured nearly half of those,” said Dominic Sunnebo, senior vice president at World at Kantar. “Amazon’s focus on live sports continues to pay off.”
The research also revealed the impact of Disney + in March last year, which was launched under the best possible conditions when the UK went into lockdown. It attracted more than 50% of all new UK subscribers in the first quarter, powered by the Star Wars television series The Mandalorian and films such as Frozen 2. However, growth slowed as the disease spread. going forward, with the streaming service attracting 15% of new subscribers in the last quarter.
Overall, for the full year, Disney + attracted the largest share of new UK subscribers, 38% of the total, with Amazon Prime Video taking a quarter and Netflix 19%.
Kantar’s research also found that the fourth quarter proved to be the best of the year with some speed for new subscribers to BritBox, which brought a 5.2% share of total new subscriptions, which were returned as a result has returned Spitting Image satire.
The most popular shows on UK membership streaming services in the fourth quarter of 2020
1 The Crown – Netflix
2 Gambit na Banrigh – Netflix
3 Am Mandalorian – Netflix
4 The Boys – Amazon Prime Video
5 An Undoing – Sky’s Now TV
Source: Kantar