Disney+, Paramount+, Peacock, Discovery+ Tops for Family Content, Netflix Shows Signs of Trouble
When you think of a family-friendly streaming service, Disney+ probably springs to mind. Paramount+, Discovery+, and Peacock are a strong second in the category. In the past week, Interpret’s VideoWatch shows that 28% of Disney+ subscribers watched family/animated content, taking the #1 spot out of all other streaming platforms.
But it seems families may be souring on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, which are 7% points behind Disney+ in this category.
Since its launch a couple of years ago, Disney+ has reached almost 120 million subscribers yet has recently experienced a slowdown in subscriber growth, adding just 2 million subscribers in its last quarter compared to over 12 million in the quarter before that.
Brett Sappington, Vice President of Interpret, said, “For the SVOD OTT market, competition has entered a new stage. Consumers are largely aware of the top services and what they offer, so competition has become even more intense… In addition to acquisition of new subscribers, Disney and other service providers are considering churn, retention, and re-acquisition of customers in their original content release strategies. Offering premium Pixar movies is a way to both keep and attract viewers.”
It’s true that Disney+ has benefitted from “The Mandalorian,” “The Book of Boba Fett,” “WandaVision,” and other exclusive originals. However, there are also parents who don’t want to risk bringing their kids into a theater to see a new animated film from Disney/Pixar. Moreover, with so much market instability around the box office, Disney clearly wants to prioritize a strategy that does more for its bottom line.
“Given the delayed box office recovery, particularly for family films, flexibility remains at the core of our distribution decisions,” Kareem Daniel, chairman of Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution, stated.
Meanwhile, 26% of subscribers to discovery+ watched family/animated content in the past week, beating competitors Netflix, Amazon, Apple TV+, and Hulu. Discovery+ was tied with Paramount+ and Peacock Premium.
While it doesn’t have the hundreds or thousands of movies that Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime have, discovery+ does include thousands of unscripted programs that families can watch together such as nature documentaries, cooking and home improvement shows, and history series.
With over 55,000 episodes from over 20 brands, discovery+ has shows from Animal Planet, Discovery, Food Network, and HGTV. For instance, the service has shows like “Kids Baking Championship,” “Too Cute!,” “Crikey! It’s the Irwins,” “Mythbusters Jr.,” and recently released “Remix My Space with Marsai Martain.”
It’s also possible that Cartoon Network, Boomerang, and Adult Swim will be added after the WarnerMedia-Discovery merger takes place later this year. This would mean that Disney+ would have a decent competitor in the children’s content space.
Related: Best Streaming Services for Families