Television Metrics See Rebound in Streaming Usage
By Movieguide® Contributor
The Nielsen report found that in May saw an increase in streaming, while cable and broadcast viewership fell.
Streaming captured 36.4% of total TV viewing.
After a 2.1% viewership dip in April, streaming rebounded up 2.5% in May. A weaker month on broadcast and cable television were large factors in the streaming rebound. On a year-over-year basis, broadcast viewership was down 5.6% while cable was down 13.7%.
Netflix increased usage by 9.2% thanks in large part to having the top three streaming titles in May. QUEEN CHARLOTTE: A BRIDGERTON STORY (5.4 billion viewing minutes), A MAN CALLED OTTO (3.1 billion) and THE MOTHER (3.0 billion) helped drive Netflix’s monthly increase.
Amazon Video also used THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL and CITADEL to prompt a 5.1% increase in usage.
YouTube, however, reigned as the king of streaming for the fourth-straight month, accounting for 8.5% of total TV viewership; compared to Netflix’s second place 7.9%. When YouTube took the top spot in February, it was unclear if the high usage was sustainable, but now the company is confident that it is. Especially as the site hosts the NFL Ticket for the first time starting in September, as live sports have always been a consistent driver of viewership.
The data for May also highlighted the rise of free ad-supported television (FAST) services. Roku reached 1.1% of total TV viewership in May, the third FAST service to break 1%. Pluto TV and Tubi have also broken the 1% barrier, making them comparable in usage to Peacock (1.1%) and HBO Max (1.2%).
Despite the general increases in streaming usage, TV viewership fell 4.4% in total from April.
Movieguide® previously reported on Nielsen data:
Last year’s network rankings revealed that Americans are prioritizing news, sports, and even family programming when consuming content.
Per Nielsen, NBC topped the network rankings, barely edging out CBS. Both channels broadcast news, sports, comedies, dramas, and even some reality television programming. For NBC, viewers can often find biblical values on display in shows like THE VOICE, that often features contestants worshipping on stage and has crowned Christians as winners.
Additionally, Variety reported several smaller networks that promote family-friendly programming break into the lineup including Chip and Joanna Gaines Magnolia Network and the new Great American Family Channel, which launched just over a year ago.
It’s encouraging to see positive networks with uplifting programming beat out more niche, excessive networks.
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