Streaming subscriptions are being widely chopped by UK consumers as the cost of living climbs, according to research commissioned by Lloyds Bank.
Over 1.2 million subscription payments have been halted in the last year, most significantly in the TV, film and music sectors. Although the banking group did not specify the platforms affected, the data shows entertainment streaming services account for 47.1 percent of cancelled subscriptions since June 2021.
Citing the rise in households “taking stock of their discretionary spending,” Lloyds found that marketplace subscriptions and gym memberships had also been getting cut since last summer, making up 17.6 percent and 7.6 percent of cancellations respectively.
Cost of streaming crisis
This trend follows a post-pandemic drop in US streaming subscriptions, with Deloitte reporting a 17 percent increase in churn between October 2020 and February 2021. In December Deloitte forecast that more than 150 million people would cancel a paid streaming subscription in 2022.
Ampere Analysis estimates that a comprehensive range of subscriptions in the UK costs around £200 a month in total, owing to fragmenting services and soaring prices. Last month Netflix raised its price for the second time in two years, now costing 22 percent more than in 2020. Disney+ also increased its cost by one third, while Amazon Prime’s price rise in the US has prompted speculation about a similar hike in the UK.
