TV, streaming platform subscribers at 8.8 million

The dowry is getting thinner. For now, however, it is still visible: 400,000 more subscribers by 2023 in Italy. An addition that allows the number of subscribers of streaming video-on-demand platforms to grow to 8.8 million. These numbers represent the emblem of that new way of enjoying audiovisual content that marks a profound break between a before and an after TV: between the television of the programme schedule and that of fragmented viewing, à la carte, without predefined schedules, which everyday experience tells us is dominant among the youngest.

Figures and numbers are taken from the update of EY's Ott Observatory, which was discussed on Friday 7 June at the European Digital Fed-Forum in Lucca. "The paid video streaming platform industry has experienced unprecedented growth, with an increase of more than 500% from 2016 to date," explains Silvestro Demarinis, Director Technology, Media & Telecommunications at EY, adding that "this development is attributable to the entry of new players in the market, the subscription of multiple platforms by the same users and the transformation of models by the offer. 85 per cent of users show interest in subscriptions that include commercials, demonstrating a remarkable openness to new ways of enjoying content'.

The EY survey photographs the waning pace of what initially appeared to be a triumphant ride: 2 million more subscribers in 2017; 1.8 in 2018; 800,000 in 2019; 1 million in 2020; 800,000 in 2021; 500,000 in 2022. Last year, in 2023, compared to about 8.8 million unique subscribers (those who actually pay for the subscription), it was estimated that more than 19 million people use one of the 11 pay platforms active in Italy and monitored by EY: Netflix; Amazon Prime Video; Disney+; Timvision; Mediaset Infinity; Now (by Sky); Dazn; Youtube Premium; Apple Tv+; Discovery+; Paramount+. The difference - between the number of subscribers and actual users - stems from the fact that for each subscription there is a leverage effect of 2-3 people: usually one subscriber subscribes and then family or a few friends take advantage of it.

In all this market dynamic, the watershed was the arrival of Netflix - in October 2015 in Italy - with its bet on TV on demand (an idea that was not new, since Sky and Mediaset already offered similar services). The 1.5 million subscribers estimated by EY for 2016 have thus risen to 8.8 million. And the average number of platforms per subscriber has risen to 2. 'The streaming market,' Demarinis continues, 'is not only that of paid platforms, but there are over 30 million users who use free streaming services. This figure has grown by 87% compared to 2016, a sign of an evolving trend that is adapting to the needs of an increasingly large and diverse audience at the end of 2023."

Within this framework, EY notes how the consumption model between pay and free users is currently very different. "76% of pay platform users," Demarinis explains, "still prefer the big TV screen, even if smart, for streaming content. Free users, on the other hand, often choose shorter content that can be enjoyed mainly through their smartphones, the device of choice for 52% of free users".