By India McCarty
It looks like streaming service’s move to offer ad-supported plans is paying off; new research found almost half of streamer subscribers use them.
“Given that TV had always been the foundation of the modern advertising business, the state of affairs was unsettling for Madison Avenue and left CMOs searching for new ways to get their messages out,” a report conducted by subscription analyst firm Antenna stated. “But today, we are in a very different place.”
The report, written by Antenna’s founder and CEO Jonathan Carson and director of strategy Brendan Brady, continued, “Advertising has reached a remarkable place of maturity in streaming…in a very short period of time.”
Antenna’s report found that 46% of Discovery Plus, Disney Plus, Hulu, HBO Max, Netflix, Paramount Plus and Peacock subscribers in the US are paying for ad-supported plans, per The Verge.
They also noted that “around 75 percent” of subscribers have tried ad-supported plans at one point or another.
Nearly half of streaming subscriptions are for plans with ads https://t.co/zO3lQ56xxO
— The Verge (@verge) May 20, 2025
Deadline reported on the rise in numbers of subscribers to ad-supported plans, too, writing that “54% of SVOD subscribers have at least one ad-supported tier of a paid service, up from 46% last year.”
The outlet also noted that Antenna reported almost 100 million subscription ad plans in the U.S. market alone, not including Amazon Prime Video. Around 65% of those plans belong to new subscribers.
In a report from earlier this year, The Verge shared that Netflix has “more than doubled” its base of ad-supported tier subscribers over the last year.
Related: Streaming Customers Prefer Cheaper, Ad-Supported Plans
At an upfront presentation for advertisers, Netflix announced that its ad-supported $7.99 per month plan reaches “more than 94 million users around the world each month.”
This is a major jump in numbers; this same time last year, Netflix reported just 40 million users subscribing to ad-supported plans.
“When you compare us to our competitors, attention starts much higher and ends much higher,” Amy Reinhard, Netflix’s president of advertising, said at Netflix’s upfront event. “And even more impressive, members pay as much attention to mid-roll ads as they do to the shows and the movies themselves.”
This move towards ad-supported subscriptions is another way streamers are trying to stay creative and keep Gen Zers attention.
“Entertainment providers should embrace innovation and agility to help them thrive,” Doug Van Dyke, vice chair of Deloitte LLP and U.S. telecom, media and entertainment sector leader, told Deadline. “This means understanding the nuances of younger audiences, leveraging technology to personalize content and advertising, and exploring new avenues for distribution and monetization. The status quo is likely no longer an option.”
Many streaming services are getting creative to win over subscribers, new and old. It looks like the addition of ad-supported plans was a gamble that paid off in the long run.
Read Next: Half of All Disney+ Subscribers Choose Ad-Supported Plans
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