Teh Shift in Canadian TV Subscriptions
A recent report reveals that nearly half of Canadian households, about 7.35 million, did not have a customary TV subscription in 2024. This figure comes from Convergence Research adn shows a four percent increase from the previous year. Projections suggest this number could rise to 54 percent by 2027.
Growth of Streaming services
the report highlights a significant trend toward subscription video on demand (SVOD) services like Netflix and Disney+. Actually, revenue from streaming subscriptions in Canada grew by 15 percent year-over-year, reaching $4.2 billion in 2024.Conversely, revenue from traditional linear TV subscriptions fell by five percent to approximately $6.5 billion.
Key Insights from the Report
Several noteworthy points emerged from the findings:
- The top ten streaming services increased their prices in canada by an average of six percent last year.
- Memberships that include ads are about 39 percent cheaper than those without ads.
- On average, each Canadian household subscribes to around 2.6 different streaming platforms.
Impact on Local Content Creation
Despite the growth of streaming revenues, most of this money is going to American companies. Bell's Crave is currently the only major Canadian service competing with giants like netflix and Disney+. This situation has prompted action from Canada's regulatory body for broadcasting and telecommunications.
to address these concerns, the CRTC introduced new regulations under the “Online Streaming Act.” This law requires foreign streaming services to invest five percent of their earnings made in Canada back into local content production.
Challenges Faced by Foreign Streamers
Many American streamers are contesting this act both legally and publicly. For instance, Netflix has reduced its funding for local arts as a response to these regulations. The CRTC plans to enforce this act before the end of the year.
as more Canadians turn away from traditional TV subscriptions towards online streaming options, there is an ongoing debate about how much foreign companies should contribute to Canada's media landscape through local content investment initiatives.
