Despite the proliferation of international streaming services, national public service broadcasters (PSB) maintain a strong foothold in Germany, according to a comprehensive new study from PSB groups ARD and ZDF. The report found that while YouTube remains the most-watched video service this year, watched “at least occassionally” by 72 percent of consumers aged 14+, ARD and ZDF each reach 61 percent of the population.
The study further revealed that ARD and ZDF’s reach has increased by 8 and 9 percent respectively since 2024. This puts the PSBs ahead of SVOD services Amazon Prime Video and Netflix, which are both used at least occasionally by about half the population.
Unsurprisingly however, the results vary by age group, with older viewers demonstrating “a stronger connection to the public broadcasting streaming platforms.” For the 50-69 age group, ARD and ZDF content is consumed on par with YouTube, while Amazon Prime Video and Netflix follow in fourth and fifth place. And for viewers aged 70+, the PSB services rank ahead of YouTube.
“Typically, older media users turn more to familiar linear media,” said the ARD/ZDF Media Study 2025. “However, this typical and sometimes stereotypical attribution is increasingly breaking down, especially as younger media users with more digitally influenced media repertoires are aging and merging into the 50+ audience group.”
But the report suggests younger viewers favour streaming services over PSB content. Among the 14-29 age group, Netflix takes second place behind YouTube, followed by Amazon Prime Video and Disney+. Interestingly though, the younger age group’s media usage is below the national average, using almost 45 minutes less media per day than the average population. And with non-linear content making up 88 percent of total video consumption, viewing patterns are less prone to fluctuations over the course of the day.
“Overall, it can be stated that usage patterns among 14- to 29-year-olds are less structured by fixed broadcast times, and media usage is becoming more heterogeneous, as content among the younger target group is increasingly accessed on demand,” said the report.
The streaming ceiling
Overall, video remains the most-consumed media type in Germany, reaching 89 percent of the population on a daily basis, followed by audio (79 percent) and editorially produced text (54 percent). Within the video segment, linear TV has the highest reach at 59 percent, ahead of online videos at 48 percent.
Meanwhile the use of SVOD services is stagnating, according to the report, as the average number of streaming services declines as we move up the age groups. German consumers use an average 2.5 video streaming services each week, rising to 3.5 for the 14-29 demographic, but dropping to 1.3 for viewers aged 70+. And while more than 90 percent of 14-49-year-olds regularly use at least one SVOD service, the figure falls to 69 percent for the 50-69 age group, and just 50 percent for users aged 70+.
The report also highlighted longer-term trends in media consumption in Germany. According to the study, daily linear TV viewing time doubled between 1970 (112 minutes) and 2020 (215 minutes), before starting to decline in 2015 (209 minutes), now settling at just under two hours (117 minutes).
“Until 2005, the daily reach of (linear) television increased continuously,” said the report. “While in the early 1960s, not every household had a television set, and this “new” medium reached less than half of the population daily (1964: 47 percent), by 1970 it had already reached more than two-thirds (71 percent). In the 1990s, the introduction of private television and the associated increase in the number of programs led to increased television usage. This was compounded by the closing of program gaps (“broadcast breaks”) and the introduction of 24-hour programming.”
“The peak was reached in 2005 with a daily reach of 89 percent of people aged 14 and older. In 2010, this figure was 86 percent, and in 2015, four out of five people aged 14 and older watched television daily (80 percent). According to the latest figures from the ARD/ZDF Media Study 2025, linear television reaches the largest daily audience (69 percent) in the German media market, despite declining reach and significantly increased competition from alternative video offerings.”
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