RE: GLEN18 Apr 2022 12:26
Times....
British households have cancelled video subscriptions in record numbers as they curb non-essential spending to cope with the cost of living squeeze, reinforcing concerns that a pandemic-fuelled boom in streaming is over.
Consumers walked away from about 1.5mn video on-demand accounts such as Disney Plus, Apple TV Plus and Now during the first three months of the year, according to figures from analytics group Kantar.
While 58 per cent of households retain at least one streaming service, a decline of only 1.3 per cent from the end of 2021, the terminations suggest that viewers have become more discerning about subscribing to multiple platforms.
A desire to save money was the most important reason for the cancellations and young adults have become particularly wary of paying for television on top of the £159 annual licence fee, the researchers found.
The findings were “sobering” for streaming providers, said Dominic Sunnebo, global insight director at Kantar. He said streaming services had to prove their worth to consumers “in what has become a heavily competitive market”.
Households are looking for ways to trim budgets to cope with rising bills. Surging energy, clothing and food prices pushed inflation to a 30-year high in March, data from the Office for National Statistics showed last week.