1.2 billion video subscribers by 2025. That’s the total global SVOD customer base estimated by leading U.S. platforms. Netflix tops the list at 341 million! Here are the numbers collated by leading industry analyst LightShed Research. Takeaways: Full Steam Ahead. Legacy studios and channels operators are now “ALL IN!” to the streaming strategy. Consumers are …
discovery+ leads “Most Streaming Sign-ups” in January: 19% of all U.S. SVOD new subscribers

discovery+ tops the SVOD “Most Streaming Sign-ups” list for U.S. in its launch month. discovery+ accounts for a 19% share of US SVOD signups in January according to new data released by ANTENNA, a subscription insights provider. That puts d+ ahead of HBO Max (14%), Disney+ (13%) and Hulu and CBS All Access (each with …
discovery+ Report Card: 11 million subscribers. What does it mean? A Dan Salerno podcast

Discovery’s new streamer discovery+ released early subscriber data: 11 million have signed up in the few weeks after launch. I ask veteran programming exec Dan Salerno: What can we learn from the numbers? Is discovery+ ‘cannibalizing’ the channels’ program pipeline and ultimately revenues? Where are the documentaries that made the Discovery brand? Dan gives a …
Oscar Documentary Award 2021. APOCALYPSE ’45: The Road from Concept to Qualification

The Academy announced the eligible candidates for Oscar consideration in the Documentary Feature category for 2021. APOCALYPSE ’45 is one of the candidates. Don’t miss our detailed Case Study of how producer / director Erik Nelson developed and completed his gripping archive-based project for Discovery. Case Study APOCALYPSE ’45: Discovery’s powerful WW2 documentary in virtual …
Nielsen’s Streaming Ratings 2020: Positive Takeaways for the Documentary / Unscripted Sector

Nielsen released their Top 10 Streamed Programs for 2020 (U.S.) in three categories: Originals, Acquisitions and Movies. Their key metric is Minutes-Streamed-per-Show. In the Originals category, the Top 10 is led by OZARK with 30.5 billion views in 2020. TIGER KING is #4 with 15.6 billion views. When I looked deeper into the data, I …
Today’s discovery+ launch spotlights David Attenborough’s 10 years of ratings dominance

David Attenborough is a promotional hook for Monday’s long-awaited launch of discovery+. The 94-year old legend narrates A Perfect Planet, a blue chip series that stands out among the new streamer’s higher quality programs. I am in awe of Attenborough’s lifetime contribution to documentary filmmaking. I earned a credit on one of his hit series. …
Netflix’s 3.3 Billion Minutes Viewed in a Week for THE CROWN. What it might mean for Unscripted. Dan Salerno’s Takeaways

by Dan Salerno “Netflix users watched more than 3 billion minutes of The Crown in the week of Nov. 16-22”. That’s The Hollywood Reporter’s headline for its coverage of Nielsen’s latest streaming rankings. Nielsen noted that two thirds of The Crown’s viewers were over the age of 55. That inspires a question: Does the older …
discovery+. What You Need to Know! Key Facts and Takeaways

Discovery Inc. President and CEO David Zaslav announced the discovery+ streaming service on Wednesday. Here are: The key facts. Takeaways from veteran programming exec Dan Salerno and myself. And another veteran network exec added valuable feedback. Mission “With discovery+, we are seizing the global opportunity to be the world’s definitive product for unscripted storytelling.” David …