Streaming Platform Growth Wanes, Specifically YouTube Experiences a Slump - YouTube maintains dominance amidst a decline in streaming growth
In a significant shift for Germany's streaming landscape, a recent study by TV Spielfilm magazine from Burda Verlag, known as "Screens in Motion 2025", suggests a saturation in the streaming market for the first time [2]. However, one platform bucking the trend is YouTube.
The study, considered representative of the online-accessible population in Germany aged 14 and above, reveals that the 30-49 age group leads in streaming subscription usage, with 68%, surpassing the 14-29 age group at 66% [1]. This makes the middle age group the largest group of streaming subscription users in Germany.
YouTube, not specified as a streaming provider in the article, is experiencing growth among older demographics due to its diverse, easily accessible, and habitual content consumption across age groups [1]. This trend is particularly strong among Baby Boomers and Generation X, who are among YouTube's fastest-growing users.
According to Marion Sperlich, head of research at Market Media Insights at Burda-Verlag, YouTube's growth can be attributed to its price-performance ratio [3]. Unlike Netflix and Prime Video, which require subscriptions, YouTube offers a free, ad-supported platform with a vast library of user-generated and professional content.
This free access, content variety, ease of use, and habitual daily engagement attract older Germans more effectively than Netflix and Prime Video's subscription models, which face retention challenges in that demographic due to content, pricing, and user preference factors [1][3][5].
The older audience in Germany, those over 50, watch 42 minutes of streaming content daily, an increase of 25 minutes [1]. Meanwhile, daily streaming viewing time for younger subscribers (14-29) has decreased from 2 minutes to 1 hour 16 minutes [1].
The study also indicates a decrease in linear TV usage in Germany, with a loss of 45 minutes per day compared to 2019. However, the media libraries of these broadcasters are being used more [4]. Additionally, there is an increasing trend of 'subscription hopping' among streaming subscribers in Germany [6].
The "Screens in Motion 2025" study was conducted by market research institute YouGov and surveyed around 2,000 people in early March [6]. Despite the study not providing information on the growth or decline of other streaming providers in Germany, the media libraries of public broadcasters have benefited from the streaming boom, with increased usage.
[1] https://www.welt.de/kultur/mediathek/article211246481/Altersgruppen-sind-die-groessten-Streaming-Kunden-in-Deutschland.html [2] https://www.welt.de/kultur/mediathek/article211246481/Altersgruppen-sind-die-groessten-Streaming-Kunden-in-Deutschland.html [3] https://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/YouTube-wird-in-Deutschland-am-meisten-genutzt-3789781.html [4] https://www.welt.de/kultur/mediathek/article211246481/Altersgruppen-sind-die-groessten-Streaming-Kunden-in-Deutschland.html [5] https://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/YouTube-wird-in-Deutschland-am-meisten-genutzt-3789781.html [6] https://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/YouTube-wird-in-Deutschland-am-meisten-genutzt-3789781.html
Read also:
- IM Motors reveals extended-range powertrain akin to installing an internal combustion engine in a Tesla Model Y
- Competitor BYD Nipping at Tesla's Heels: European Victories for BYD Explained
- Amazon customer duped over Nvidia RTX 5070 Ti purchase: shipped item replaced with suspicious white powder; PC hardware fan deceived, discovers salt instead of GPU core days after receiving defective RTX 5090.
- Hyundai's 2025 IONIQ 9 luxury electric SUV receives a thorough evaluation, highlighting its abundant features and significant cost.
