What are the CTV Streaming Wars, and are they over in 2024?
Photo: Adobe
If you follow any CTV or Digital Advertising news, you have probably heard of the “Streaming Wars.” Streaming Wars is a term used to describe the ongoing battle between streaming TV networks to be the largest and most powerful CTV Streaming provider in revenue and subscribers.
If you think about any industry, there is always a “Big Three” at the very least. In tech, the “Big Three” are Google, Amazon, and Apple. In the traditional linear TV space, the “Big Three” are CBS, ABC, and NBC. When looking at most industries, you are likely to see a “Big Three” or “Big Five” when it comes to revenue. With the slightly new and constantly changing Streaming TV environment, there are many companies that are actively working to earn and keep their spots as one of “The Big Three” or the “The Big 5” in CTV Streaming. In other words, every streaming TV provider wants to be at the top, hence the term “Streaming Wars.”
In 2024, there are a few different major players in the Streaming TV landscape, and they are all restructuring, have merged with other companies, are considering Streaming TV partnerships, and are constantly adjusting their revenue streams of opportunity in order to solidify their spot in the top three or top five CTV streaming Networks.
Below are the top 9 CTV streaming networks based on company released subscriber numbers in 2024. Of the top 9 streaming partners, 6 are traditional TV Networks. Lets take a look at each of these partners in a bit more detail, and where they stand in 2024.
1) Netflix- *270M Subscribers- *Source: Netflix Upfront 2024: The Year of Growth and Momentum
Netflix has long been the king of streaming TV when looking at subscriber numbers. *Netflix was founded in 1997 by renting DVDs through the mail and in 2007, Netflix introduced its streaming service. (*Source About Netflix). When thinking about the CTV and Streaming industry, Netflix is one of the first that comes top of mind for many. Although Netflix has a high subscriber base, the same issues that exist for other streaming partners also exist for Netflix. The CTV market continues to be over-crowded, and customers are constantly making decisions on which content partners to keep, and which to get rid of as streaming TV subscriber costs continue to increase. Netflix had long been known for no ads, however, given the constantly changing landscape, rising costs of streaming services, and the number of streaming options to choose from, Netflix has had to adapt to the changing CTV streaming market.
In 2023- one year after launching an ad-supported plan on Netflix, Amy Reinhard, President of Advertising noted:
“As we continue to build and adapt our service, we’re excited about the progress we’ve made and that we now reach 15 million global monthly active users.
Our goal isn’t just to offer the same products and tools the industry has come to expect — although we’ve made a lot of progress on that front over the last year. It’s to build something bigger and better than what exists today.
We want to shape the future of advertising on Netflix and help marketers tap into the amazing fandom generated by our must-watch shows and movies.”
*Source: One Year Into Netflix Ads
Although Netflix has the highest number of subscribers, one of the major criticisms many of the subscribers that they currently have are not using the ad-supported tier, which is limiting to the potential revenue generated from Digital Advertising.
2) Amazon Prime Video – *200M+ Subscribers-- *Source: “Prime Video, a one-stop entertainment destination for viewers and advertisers”
It is no secret that Amazon maintains power in many industry sectors, including the CTV Space. *Amazon Prime Video is included as part of the Amazon Prime membership, and through the membership users have access to a library of movies, series, and sports*. *Source: Everything you need to know about Prime Video. Since Amazon has a database of registration for users in addition to shopping histories through Amazon Prime, this makes Amazon Prime Video extremely valuable to advertisers in the Streaming TV space. As CTV Advertising continues to rise, Amazon’s shopper data paired with their registration data makes them highly valuable in the CTV space, and I would guess that their value will only continue to grow. In April of 2024, Variety reported that “Prime Video Now Reaches More Than 200 Million Monthly Viewers, TV Ads ‘Off to a Strong Start,’ Amazon CEO Says”
3) Disney+ – 153M+ Subscribers *Source: Disney+
Disney+ is the largest of the traditional TV Networks when it comes to subscriber count in 2024. It is also important to note that Disney+’s parent company, The Walt Disney Company, also owns a majority stake in Hulu, in addition to ESPN+ so there is the option to bundle Disney+ with Hulu and ESPN+. *Disney+ launched in November of 2019. (*Source: Disney+ Launches Today—and a New Era of Disney Entertainment Begins), making it the 2nd Traditional TV network to launch a streaming service. It will be interesting to see how Disney+’s parent company, The Walt Diseny Company, will continue to evolve their streaming services given ownership of ESPN+, and Hulu.
4) Max- 99.6M Subscribers (Source: Warner Bros. Discovery Reports First-Quarter 2024 Results)
Max is the newest streaming service included on this list, with *Max launching in April of 2023. (*Source: WARNER BROS. DISCOVERY UNVEILS MAX STREAMING SERVICE). As I mentioned previously, many individual streaming networks that are not nearly large enough to compete with Netflix and Amazon are merging to become larger and more powerful in the market---Max is a prime example of this. Max’s parent company *Warner Bros Discovery was formed after a deal to combine Warner Media with Discovery. Max includes: Discovery Channel, discovery+, Warner Bros. Entertainment, CNN, CNN+, DC, Eurosport, HBO, HBO Max, HGTV, Food Network, Investigation Discovery, TLC, TNT, TBS, truTV, Travel Channel, MotorTrend, Animal Planet, Science Channel, New Line Cinema, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Turner Classic Movies and others. (Source: Combination of Discovery and WarnerMedia Creates Warner Bros. Discovery, Global Leader in Entertainment and Streaming).
5) Paramount+ - 71.2M Source: Subscribers Source: 1Q24_Paramount Earnings Release
Paramount+ is one of the most interesting players on this list given it’s media attention on mergers and partnerships. Paramount+ is another traditional TV company that was formed out of a merger between Viacom and CBS. *Paramount+ launched in March of 2021, and includes “BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and the Smithsonian Channel, Paramount+ is home to premium entertainment for the whole family.” (*Source: Paramount+ Launches Today with Live Sports, Breaking News, and a Mountain of Entertainment). *Paramount announced in July of 2024 that it would merge with Skydance Media in order to further compete in the market. (*Source: Skydance Media and Paramount Global Sign Definitive Agreement to Advance Paramount as a World-Class Media and Technology Enterprise). Paramount is an interesting one, because it’s not the smallest in the market, yet it’s also not close to being the largest. This makes Paramount highly likely to seek streaming partners and/or additional mergers. In July of 2024, CNBC reported that “Paramount Global is holding talks with other entertainment companies about merging its Paramount+ streaming service with an existing platform. If it reaches a deal, it may kick off a new wave of streaming partnerships that could put the entire media industry on firmer footing, and that “One of the companies that has expressed a desire to reach a deal is Warner Bros. Discovery, according to people familiar with the matter. Combining Max and Paramount+ could strengthen both services by allowing them to better compete with Netflix and Disney’s suite of platforms (Disney+, Hulu and ESPN) for eyeballs and future content.” (Source: Paramount is hunting for a streaming partner, could kick off a wave of deals). Forbes reported in February of 2024 that “Streamers Paramount+ And Peacock In Talks About Partnering”. All bets are up in the air for Paramount, so it will be interesting to see where it shakes out.
6) Hulu – 51.1M Subscribers Source: The Walt Disney Company Reports Third Quarter and Nine Months Earnings for Fiscal 2024.
Hulu is one of the pioneers in streaming TV., *Founded in 2007 as a joint venture between News Corporation, NBC Universal and later Providence Equity Partners and The Walt Disney Company. (*Source: About Hulu) *As of November 2023, The Walt Disney Company purchased Comcast’s 33% stake in the company, now making the Walt Disney company the majority shareholder of Hulu. Source: The Walt Disney Company to Purchase Remaining Stake in Hulu from Comcast. It will be interesting to see how The Walt Disney Company continues to evolve Hulu now that they are the majority shareholder.
7) Peacock- 34M Subscribers Source: NBCUniversal Named Among Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company.
Peacock is the 3rd of the Traditional TV Networks on this list to launch a streaming service, with *Peacock launching in April of 2020 out of NBCUniversal. Source: NBCUniversal Unveils Peacock, A Free Premium Ad-Supported Streaming Service With Subscription Tiers. “*NBCUniversal owns and operates leading entertainment and news brands, including NBC, NBC News, MSNBC, CNBC, NBC Sports, Telemundo, NBC Local Stations, Bravo, USA Network, and Peacock, our premium ad-supported streaming service, and entertainment and programming through Universal Filmed Entertainment Group and Universal Studio Group, and have world-renowned theme parks and attractions through Universal Destinations & Experiences. NBCUniversal is a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation.” ( Source: About NBCUniversal) In the world of CTV, Peacock may be small when it comes to subscriber numbers, but they are still a major player in the market due to their sports rights and entertainment properties. In 2024, NBCUniversal hosted the Paris Olympic, and will host the Super Bowl in 2026. As mentioned when talking about Paramount, Forbes reported in February of 2024 that “Streamers Paramount+ And Peacock In Talks About Partnering”, so like Paramount- NBCUniversal seems to be open to streaming partnerships.
8) ESPN+ - 24.8M Subscribers (Source: ESPN Digital 2024: No. 1 in August)
ESPN+ is no doubt a leader when it comes to streaming Sports on CTV. *ESPN+ launched in April of 2018, (Source: ESPN+ to Launch April 12, Bringing Sports Fans More Live Sports, Exclusive Originals and On-Demand Library – All for $4.99 Per Month, and is the 2nd of the “Traditional TV Networks” included on this list to launch. As part of The Walt Disney Company, ESPN+ can be bundled with Disney+ and Hulu.
9) Starz – 15.2M Subscribers (Source: LIONSGATE AND LIONSGATE STUDIOS REPORT RESULTS FOR FIRST QUARTER FISCAL 2025)
Starz is the smallest CTV streamer on the list, and is one of the only remaining premium cable TV channels with its own standalone app. It’s competitors- HBO Max ( Which turned into Max in 2023, Source: Why Did HBO Max Become Max? Behind the Streamer’s Relaunch Strategy) and Showtime (merged with Paramount+ in 2024- Source: Showtime Standalone App To Shut Down In April After Merging With Paramount+).
Starz launched it’s streaming service in April of 2016. (Source: Starz Introduces Its $8.99 A Month Standalone Streaming Service With Early Debut For ‘Outlander’). As one of the last remaining stand along premium Cable TV channels, it will be interesting to see how Starz evolves in the ever competitive landscape.
So are the streaming wars really over in 2024? Depending on the source—the answer is sure to change. However, I believe that the streaming wars are far from over since the Digital Media landscape is ever changing and evolving. The future is surely unknown, and with so many options available, an ever-shifting economy, shifting TV rights, and the need for massive scale amongst CTV Streaming Networks will only continue to grow as the landscape shifts.
