Streaming giants YouTube, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video reach unprecedented viewing figures in December, according to Nielsen's latest report.
Record Breaking Streaming Viewership in December 2024
Streaming platforms continued their meteoric rise in December 2024, with two of the four days in the interval exceeding 100 billion TV viewing minutes, according to Nielsen's The Gauge report. This surge in streaming consumption was the main cause of the 4% increase in overall TV viewing during the month.
YouTube played a significant role in this growth, securing a record 11.1% share of all TV viewing time, surpassing the combined share of broadcast and cable for the first time. This shift in consumer behavior away from traditional scheduled television to streaming platforms like YouTube reflects a broader industry transition.
Streaming's share of total TV usage had been steadily growing, rising from 26% in May 2021 to 44.8% by December 2024. Notably, Netflix and Prime Video also hit record viewing levels. Netflix's monthly usage increased by 14%, with a 11% increase even if contributions from the two NFL games were excluded. Prime Video achieved a platform-best 4.0% share of TV, boosted by hosting five NFL "Thursday Night Football" games and the success of original series like "Red One" and "Beast Games".
"Red One" was the month's top streaming title on Prime Video, racking up 5.6 billion viewing minutes. "Beast Games", a new original reality series on Prime Video, accumulated over 700 million viewing minutes across its first three episodes.
Max, another streaming platform, saw the largest monthly viewing increase among all platforms in December, driven by shows like "The Big Bang Theory", "Friends", and "Dune: Prophecy".
The cable category also saw changes in December. It had a 18% increase in feature-film viewing, on top of a 14% increase in November. However, cable news viewership decreased by 27% due to the end of the presidential election cycle.
Broadcast viewing accounted for 22.4% of total TV viewing, while cable held a 23.8% share. The six most-watched telecasts of the month were on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. Despite the overall increase in streaming viewership, broadcast TV's share experienced a 18% dip in scripted drama viewership during the holiday season.
In conclusion, December 2024 marked a significant milestone in the shift from linear TV to streaming services. The surge in streaming consumption, particularly the rising dominance of YouTube as a TV viewing platform, was the primary driver of the 4% increase in overall TV viewing.
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