On-demand video overtakes pay-TV for the first time

Ofcom’s first annual Media Nations report (which replaces both its previously published PSB Annual Report and Digital Radio Report) has found there are now more subscriptions to Netflix, Amazon and NOW TV than there are to ‘traditional’ pay-TV services such as Sky, BT and Virgin, according to BARB Establishment Survey data.

In Q1 2018, pay-TV subscriptions in the UK totalled 15.1 million, while the leading three on-demand video services came in at 15.4 million - a figure that includes subscriptions to multiple on-demand services within one household.

Amazon Prime Video had a slightly larger year-on-year growth than Netflix, up by 32.7% to reach 4.8 million subscribers in Q1 of 2018. But Netflix remains the most popular subscription video-on-demand service with a presence nearly double that of its closest rival - in Q1 2018, it was in 9.1 million UK households, a 32.2% increase over the same time last year (though not as impressive as it had hoped).

Becky is a hi-fi, AV and technology journalist, formerly the Managing Editor at What Hi-Fi? and Editor of Australian Hi-Fi and Audio Esoterica magazines. With over twelve years of journalism experience in the hi-fi industry, she has reviewed all manner of audio gear, from budget amplifiers to high-end speakers, and particularly specialises in headphones and head-fi devices.

In her spare time, Becky can often be found running, watching Liverpool FC and horror movies, and hunting for gluten-free cake.