Paramount+ Achieves Ratings Milestone, as Streaming Hits All-Time High of Total TV Viewing
Mid-July is a precarious time for kids in school. Summer is still in full swing, but August is creeping closer and closer, and with it, back-to-school time. Many are yearning for a return to June, when summer break was just getting started and there was seemingly no end in sight.
Streamers may yearn for a return to June too, based on new data from Nielsen. According to Nielsen's monthly Gauge report, streaming accounted for 37.7% of all TV watched during the month of June, its highest share ever achieved. The number was higher than broadcast and cable, and as per usual Netflix led all streamers with an 8.8% share of total viewing time.
Kids 2-17 on break from their studies were a big driver of new viewing, as this demographic caused a 2.2% increase in total TV usage. Younger children especially gravitated toward streaming; 62% of increased viewing time among this group was spent on a streaming service. Kids 12-17 split their time more evenly between streaming services and other platforms like social media (YouTube, TikTok, etc.). Overall, 90% of the increased viewing time from kids was spent on non-linear TV sources.
Paramount+ was the biggest winner in June among streaming platforms, as it managed to cross the coveted 1% of total viewing time threshold. “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” gets much of the credit for that jump, seeing almost 1 billion minutes streamed during the month, despite not releasing its Season 2 premiere until June 15.
Streaming’s gains were linear TV’s losses, as both cable and broadcast TV dipped in usage during June. This is to be at least partially expected, as major sporting events like the NBA Finals are fewer and further between, and TV series don’t typically release new seasons until fall — though of course, this year’s writers’ and actors’ strikes are likely to upset that schedule. Broadcast TV lost two percentage points of total viewing time as compared to May, and cable slipped half a point.
It will be fascinating to see if streaming can hold onto its gains amidst the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Some streamers, including Paramount+ are already announcing their streaming originals will head to broadcast channels this fall to fill out programming lineups. Those could pull viewers off of streaming services temporarily, but they may also drive more users to streaming to watch similar content.
Paramount Plus
Paramount+ is a subscription video streaming service that includes on-demand access to 40,000+ TV show episodes from BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr. and more. The lineup includes “1883,” “Tulsa King,” “Star Trek: Discovery,” Nickelodeon’s “SpongeBob SquarePants,” and “PAW Patrol.” Subscribers can watch the NFL, college football, The Masters, college basketball, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa, Serie A, and NWSL. The service also offers the option to watch your live CBS affiliate. The upgraded ad-free package includes premium movies and shows from Showtime.