YouTube and Tubi Are Giving Netflix, Disney a Run for Their Money
Amid YouTube’s steady rise as a real competitor in the streaming world, ad-supported FAST channels have also quietly become a thorn in SVODs’ side.
Nielsen unveiled its Media Distributor Gauge last month, a companion to the monthly Gauge report that tallies total TV consumption in the U.S. by parent media company. In a potential surprise to those not chronically online, the new metric placed YouTube second only to Disney for April, outpacing traditional broadcast companies and SVOD giants alike.
That trend continued into May, as YouTube grew its share of TV viewership to 9.7%, while Disney slightly dipped, to 11.4%. Coupled with the fact that YouTube is also continuing its streak as the most used individual streaming platform, it’s clear the UGC pioneer is fully shed of its Camcorder roots in favor of being home to high-caliber creators and potentially Emmy-worthy shows.
But another interesting detail is that while most traditional media companies either saw minimal growth or broke even, Fox had the biggest jump, from 6.1% in April to 6.4% in May. This growth is partly fueled by Tubi, a FAST (free ad-supported streaming TV) channel that has historically not been seen as a threat to major SVOD platforms such as Disney+ and Netflix.
The truth is that, as of May, Tubi has the same percentage of TV usage as Disney+ (1.8% each), despite the latter hosting a bevy of classic franchises and multimillion-dollar originals.
As for how FAST channels are keeping pace with premium streaming platforms, a likely answer is the former is using an old but reliable formula pioneered by the latter. Today, FAST channels including Tubi and Roku are a throwback of sorts to the early days of Netflix and Hulu: a massive library of old and licensed shows and movies, plus a handful of original content, all at a bargain.
Just like how Netflix’s biggest hits were once licensed properties such as “The Office” and “Friends,” Tubi has found success from off-air but beloved reality offerings, fan-favorite shows from the CW, network series experiencing a second life and victims of David Zaslav’s tax write-offs.
Most notably, the “bargain” for FAST channels is the low-low price of free, which looks increasingly appealing for budget-conscious consumers as the major streamers regularly raise their subscription prices.
Yes, there are ads on Tubi, but the bottom tiers for all major platforms are now ad-supported in addition to being more expensive. For those who long for the early, cheaper days of streaming, a free, ad-supported option such as Tubi or Roku may be more appealing than paying more for formally ad-free streamers.
As the SVOD world becomes overcrowded and pricier, more people are seeing FAST channels’ appeal. Nielsen reports that Tubi usage has increased by an impressive 43% percent over May 2023, while Roku enjoyed a 36% year-over-year growth in usership.
But even as SVOD, FAST and social video might be at war, they nonetheless fall under Nielsen’s blanket “streaming” category — which is still giving traditional TV a thorough battering. Total broadcast and cable TV viewership shrank to 50.5% for May, marking a new low for the year thus far. This update comes just 10 months after traditional TV viewership fell below 50% for the first time back in July 2023.
