SVOD stacking on the rise in US and Europe

SVOD stacking – defined as subscribing to three or more streaming services – is on the rise both in the US and Europe, according to Ampere Analysis.

According to the research outfit, the proportion of Internet users with three or more SVOD subscriptions has grown 6.6% since Q3 2018, while in Europe growth has been 6.3%.

Around two in five users in the US take three or more SVOD services, while one in five Europeans surveyed do the same, according to Ampere.

Combining pay TV and SVOD services is still the most common combination of services in most countries surveyed by Ampere, but the number of people that do this varies considerably between territories, ranging from 56% in the Netherlands, South Africa and the US to 13% in Japan, where combining free TV and SVOD is more popular. A preference for SVOD to pay TV is also prevalent in Australia and Italy.

Ampere found that the proportion of consumers who are using SVOD and free TV, with no pay TV at all, has been increasing in western European markets and the US, with Italy and the UK having the highest proportion of SVOD and free consumers. Of the countries surveyed, France, the US and Denmark have the lowest proportion with this combination.

Minal Modha, consumer research lead at Ampere Analysis said: “While cord-cutting is a major issue in the USA, it has been a less significant challenge for the industry in many international markets. However, our research shows that consumers in many global markets are increasingly combining SVoD products with a free broadcast TV service, placing future a growth obstacle in the path of incumbent pay TV service providers.”