We believe many people worldwide are familiar with streaming apps. Otherwise, how would they be able to watch their favorite series and movies on Netflix?
Maybe some of them are fans of Game of Thrones and they know it is not available on Netflix. So what do they do? They go to an app store to download HBO´s video streaming app to watch that series.
Streaming apps have become part of people’s lives. They probably have on their mobile device a platform that provides music and podcast services like Apple Music and Spotify or a streaming video app like YouTube.
In this article, we will talk about how fast streaming apps have been growing, how consumers have been behaving and what the market trends are.
The streaming video apps growth
Streaming video apps have been growing strongly worldwide, especially in the US. According to research conducted by Sensor Tower, the US spending on subscription video on demand (SVOD) apps had very high growth in 2017 and reached $781 million. Impressive, right?
HBO Now, Netflix and YouTube are the top three most profitable video streaming apps on the list, thanks to the increasing demand for mobile video. Let’s see why:
1- HBO Now
HBO’s video streaming app ranked third on the list, with its revenue reaching $67 million in the third quarter of the year.
The company has built an entire practice around customer relationship management to keep its audience engaged every month. HBO has an always-on strategy and also a 12-week strategy to drive app downloads and engagement.
The premium network relies on shows such as Game of Thrones to generate revenue growth and has got around 34 million subscribers in the United States, which approximately 2 million of those come from HBO Now.
2- Netflix
Their mobile app revenue grew 113% YoY (year over year) to $290 million. According to Ooyala, 47% of mobile video viewing is on videos that last 20 minutes or less, in order to keep the viewer’s attention longer. Can you guess what Netflix has done?
They have recently invested in more short-form 15-minute video series and that could raise engagement on mobile, which is part of their app strategy.
Approximately, Netflix has over 139 million paid subscriptions around the world, including 58.49 million in the United States.
The company has been expanding the production of “Netflix Original” content and offers a great variety of films and series.
3- YouTube
YouTube app revenue grew 154% year over year and it shows how popular it is among mobile users.
Do you know how YouTube´s marketing strategy works? They earn money through sponsored ads and some other services.
For example, a sponsored video is uploaded on the platform and the advertiser has to pay YouTube based on the number of views it gets afterward. This sort of ad is named SERP advertising.
In addition to that, the company has recently launched YouTube TV, which is a subscription-based service that allows users to watch channels such as NBC, FOX, ESPN, Disney and more on YouTube.
YouTube has got over 1.5 billion users and more than 50% of the platform’s views come from people who use mobile devices.
What about music streaming apps?
There are a lot of music streaming apps out there such as Deezer, Pandora, Tidal and more. But the world’s two most popular platforms are Apple Music and Spotify and no other company comes close when it comes to the number of subscriptions.
According to MusicWatch, it seems that the combined market share of the top two competitors has already surpassed 80 percent of 51 million subscribers in the United States.
Spotify has come up with a business model that goes against music piracy over the internet and focuses on consumers that behave differently from the past. These consumers do not buy physical CDs or download music illegally, for instance.
We can say one of the reasons Spotify has been successful amongst millennials is the fact that social media elements have been added to the platform. The company targets the right audience and provides a great experience to them.
What to expect
App Annie released its 2019 predictions for the worldwide app economy. According to this forecast, the app consumer spend will increase five times as fast as the overall global economy and It is supposed to surpass $122 billion.
Still, according to that projection, another trend is the growth in video streaming apps and the number of in-app subscriptions.
Also, the total time in video streaming apps is expected to increase 110% from 2016 to the current year, with consumer spending in apps of this category up by 520% over the same period of time.
Therefore, based on this information we shared with you about how streaming app companies have been focusing on consumers to generate growth and revenue, we hope you can also optimize your app marketing strategies by doing so.
If you are looking to boost your results and need some additional insight, feel free to contact one of our ASO experts.
