The year 2020 may leave a bitter taste in your mouth, but one thing that thrived during the pandemic is online streaming. The total number of global streaming service subscriptions surpassed 1.1 billion globally at the end of 2020 according to the Motion Picture Association’s annual THEME report.
With more viewers choosing to cut the cord last year, cable TV decreased by 2% in 2020, dropping to 530.7 million globally.
Last year saw a big boost in people staying at home for work and school, with less outside social interactions. That left people with more free time than ever to binge their favorite shows and discover new content and streaming services.
The report shows that for the first time since 2012, U.S. adults had an increase in the amount of time they spent in front of the TV. Viewership was up 7 minutes meaning the average amount of time an adult watches live or recorded TV is three hours and 34 minutes a day.
OTT saw an even greater increase in viewing time. Streaming services viewership surpassed 1 hour for the first time with 71.8 minutes average, up 34%.
American’s really got into their shows last year. In fact, around 80% of all U.S. adults watched shows, series, or movies whether on traditional TV or streaming. That’s the highest percentage ever recorded.