Amazon Prime Video took 45 percent of new subscribers to streaming services in the UK in Q4 2021, says new research by Kantar.
The Amazon-owned streaming service took over twice the share of new subscribers compared to Disney+ (19.3 percent) and nine times the subscribers that Netflix gained (five percent).
These figures, released by Kantar as part of its Entertainment on Demand research for the UK market, echo Netflix’s report in its earning call last week that its subscriber growth is faltering. Kantar found that its subscriber base in the UK remained essentially unchanged between Q3 and Q4, gaining only 70,000 subscribers. By contrast Amazon gained 700,000.
Kantar predicts that Amazon Prime Video will overtake Netflix in terms of total subscribers by Q4 2024.
Despite the strong subscriber growth figures for Prime Video, there are some challenges for the service to face. Netflix has phased out free trials, unlike Prime Video. Kantar’s figures suggest that four in ten (41 percent) of its new subscribers in Q4 2021 were brought in through free trials.
Kantar also only lists one Amazon Prime show in their top ten “most enjoyed” programmes on VOD services in the UK. Wheel of Time makes it to number five in the rankings.
The rankings found Netflix’s Squid Game to be the “most enjoyed” title in Q4 2021, followed by Disney+’s Hawkeye.
Challenges Ahead for Prime Video and Netflix
While Amazon Prime Video faces significant barriers to catching up with Netflix, it does appear to be closing the gap. Kantar reports that in Q1 2020, there was a 30 percent difference in terms of overall subscriber share. By December 2021, there was a difference of just 11 percent.
The figures prompt questions about how Netflix proceeds in mature markets like the UK. It could pursue options like live sport or an ad-supported tier. Netflix is also pursuing gaming, but whether that tactic will pay dividends in terms of growth remains to be seen.
“There are a number of growth options available to Netflix, but right now, it’s not employing any of them to great effect across Britain. 2022 is therefore going to be critical to its growth strategy. Whichever option it chooses will create risks, but they will be needed to drive growth in this maturing market,” commented Dominic Sunnebo, global insight director, Kantar.
Q4 2021 saw six percent of UK households take out a new SVOD service subscription. Of those new subscribers, 40 percent were already subscribed to another SVOD service, compared to the 34 percent who were completely new to subscription video.
