Strategy Analytics researchers have corrected upwards, due to coronavirus, the forecasts for the global market for streaming audiovisual content. By the end of 2020, subscriptions to Netflix and similar services will reach 949 million units on a global scale, 47 million more (+ 5%) than previously estimated.
In the long run, analysts are expecting 621 million subscriptions to grow between 2019 and 2025, when people who pay for a streaming video service will be 1.43 billion. In China there will be 438 million, and 342 million will register in the USA, where three out of four families will be subscribed to at least one service.
"A significant factor influencing future subscription growth is the impact of coronavirus, both in the short and long term," explains analyst Michael Goodman. "In the short term, the coronavirus will increase both subscriptions and views, as an increasing number of consumers will maintain social distance or be forced into quarantine."
In the medium to long term, however, much will depend on the continuation of the pandemic and the consequent economic damage. "With companies closing and people getting laid off, consumers will have to make tough decisions about how to spend their money, and services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney, however wonderful they may be, are not essential," concludes Goodman.
