Internet is all around us and has quickly and silently made its place in everything we do today. That’s because of the super flexible and adaptable trait of the internet which allows it to seamlessly mix with any existing technology or gadget, either wirelessly or through wires. This the proof of the concept of IoT. IoT or the internet of things is a concept according to which the internet has been transformed into a physical form, thus the name, internet of things. Regarding what things are part of this trend, in short, all the gadgets and devices that we use today have a part to play in this concept of IoT. Almost every device that we use today has some hint of the internet in it, like smartphones, smartwatches, smart TVs, computers, laptops, and even gaming consoles now have the functionality of the internet and are considered a part of the IoT infrastructure.
If we look closely at these devices we realize that most of these devices are for entertainment purposes, yes, there are laptops and personal computers in there as well but let’s be honest we use those devices mostly for our entertainment activities and less for work-related tasks. So it won’t be wrong to conclude that the internet and the whole concept of IoT have tremendously benefitted the entertainment industry, and not just IoT but the internet itself has completely revolutionized the entertainment sector. The gaming industry has gone completely online allowing players around the world to play together. Plus with the advent of streaming platforms, the whole home media industry that had a billion-dollar market share is now obsolete and there is hardly anyone who buys DVDs or cassettes now, as everything is available online to stream.
Companies like blockbuster which used to sell and rent home media which was worth 5.9 billion dollars at its peak are completely shut and out of business now. And the next big consumer shift that we are witnessing is regarding cable TV which is also being slowly phased out and replaced by streaming services, in a trend being referred to as cord-cutting, something which we will discuss later on. And if you are a fan of streaming and would like to try a streaming service we will recommend that you subscribe to Cox Internet Plans which will allow you to watch your favorite streaming content in HD, plus you will also be able to enjoy many additional perks like a network of countrywide Wifi hotspots and free internet security through a high-speed Cox internet connection, this will come with extremely fast speed so you can stream on as many devices as you want.
Cord Cutting and the Rise of Streaming
Cord-cutting was a trend that started back in 2016 when people realizing the potential of streaming services started shifting towards streaming and ditched their cable connections. However, at that time the pace of this process was slow. After the pandemic, when the economy plunged into recession suddenly and inflation was on the rise, people were struggling from not only health but financial crisis as well. As many became unemployed during this time and resorted to reducing their living expense, which in turn, gave many an idea to cut their cable connections in order to save costs. Since streaming was a service that was much more affordable and worked over the internet which many already had. So in times like these cord-cutting was the most probable solution to save some expenses.
This trend shot up the popularity of streaming services during the pandemic and it is estimated that global streaming subscriptions went up as high as 1 billion active subscribers. This was a huge number. Another example of the popularity of streaming services can be seen in the example of Disney+. The entertainment giant Disney leaped into the streaming industry quite late although there were services like Hulu dominating the streaming market which is also owned by Disney. However, Disney entered with its own brand name in streaming through its Disney+ platform in November of 2019, and by the same time next year, it had already accumulated almost 74 million active subscribers. That’s just the case with one streaming service and there are countless others as well that shot up during the past two years.
Biggest Streaming Services by Subscriber Count
There have been countless streaming services over the past couple of years due to the immense potential in the streaming market. However, here we are going to talk about the largest companies with the most extensive content library.
Netflix
This one is a no-brainer because anyone who knows about streaming has heard the word Netflix. The small company that was present even back in the 2000s offering its streaming services only started getting recognition in 2011 when people started realizing the potential of streaming. Now Netflix is the undisputed king of the streaming scene with almost 220 million worldwide subscribers. Not only is Netflix the biggest streaming service as per subscriber base, but it also holds the biggest content library as compared to all other streaming platforms. At the moment Netflix has 36,000 hours of content in its library which translates to four years if watched continuously.
This is the most extensive collection of original and licensed movies and series. These numbers are also reflected in its revenue where the company makes an average of 20 billion each year and has a market cap of 176 billion. No doubt Netflix was the one that cracked the code of a modern user’s entertainment need and struck a goldmine with this subscription-based streaming model which all other companies followed suit and made streaming a global trend.
Amazon Prime Video
Trailing at a close second is the streaming venture from technology giant Amazon. The Amazon prime video is a subscription-based OTT service that comes as a part of the Amazon Prime subscription or can be bought as a standalone service. At the moment the amazon prime subscribers are 200 million globally while the Amazon Prime Video subscription count stands at 175 million. This is the single platform giving closest competition to Netflix with its wide arsenal of original movies and TV shows along with a great rooster of licensed content. Although prime video launched back in 2006 with a different name and business model and over the years changed its name and working format to finally coming to its current state in 2014. Being added as a part of amazon prime subscription gave a huge boost to its subscriber count. At the moment there is an estimated collection of 24000 movies and more than 2000 series available on the platform.
Conclusion
With so many companies entering the streaming industry and saturation is immense at this point. We decided to talk about the pioneers and the biggest streaming platforms that started this trend in the first place. Although there are many other big streaming giants, we decided to include only Netflix and Amazon Prime Video because they are the market leaders with the most number of subscribers and are the ones that started this trend in the first place.
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