Paramount Plus #1 for 5 months straight: Netflix, Disney Plus, Prime sink
The Australian Streaming TV Charts for May 2023 see Paramount Plus break records as Netflix, BINGE, Prime Video, Disney Plus and Stan slide.
Paramount Plus has continued its stunning rise, securing top spot in the Australian Streaming TV Charts for a 5th consecutive month.
The charts look at the value of each of Australia's premium streaming video on-demand apps, based on the relative popularity of their content, the number of seasons of each show they house and their age, as well as the price of the service.
Paramount Plus took top spot from Amazon's Prime Video back in January 2023 and has held on ever since. Not only that, but it has continually improved its value score. In May 2023, its score of 110 is the highest for a paid app since Finder began tracking the streaming TV market.
Chief contributors in May 2023 came from new seasons of Yellowjackets, South Park and Star Trek: Picard. All 3 were in the top 10 most in-demand shows of April, according to data supplied to Finder by market watch firm Parrot Analytics.
Rabbit Hole also had a solid debut at 34. Meanwhile, 1923, Tulsa King, Last King of the Cross and Mayor of Kingstown have continued to be popular.
These titles saw Paramount Plus' market share of the most demanded content in Australia increase to 14.34%. This places it 3rd behind Foxtel Now (16.55%) and BINGE (16.48%), which are seeing strong demand for Succession, House of the Dragon, The Walking Dead, The White Lotus and The Last of Us. And ahead of Disney+ (11.7%).
But its depth of seasons and price point (just $89.99/year) puts it well ahead of its rivals in terms of value.
Netflix, Disney Plus and Prime Video sink
Elsewhere in the charts, there are worrying signs for Prime Video and Netflix. Despite retaining 2nd spot in the Top 10 TV Charts – Paid, Prime Video saw its value score drop 23%.
Its value score of 60 is Prime Video's worst return to date, and comes at a bad time given an imminent price rise is likely to hit that score hard again in June. Interest has waned on exclusives Daisy Jones & The Six, The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power and The Boys.
Meanwhile the Netflix slide has continued, albeit at a lesser rate than previous months. After peaking at 5th spot with a value score of 44 in January 2023, Netflix has drifted down to 8th and a score of 20. Only The Night Agent stood out as a success story during April, with support from Shadow and Bone.
To be fair, BINGE, Stan and Disney Plus also saw small slides, despite the latter having the most in-demand show of the month in The Mandalorian. It took the top spot from The Last of Us. There was a small rebound for Apple TV+ thanks to Ted Lasso.
For Disney Plus, its value score of 57 is a fair drift from its peak in October 2022, when it was sitting at 72. Back then, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, The Book of Boba Fett, Obi-wan Kenobi, Moon Knight and Modern Family were all in-demand, but these titles have since dropped out of the Top 100.
9Now knocks off ABC iView
Over on the Top Free TV Charts, it was 9Now that stormed to victory. Buoyed by strong demand for LEGO Masters Australia and Married at First Sight, the app saw 23% growth through April to find its way to top spot.
Despite that success, it was only enough to push 9Now to a market share of 3.03% of the most in-demand content of the month. A stark reminder of where the free-to-air channels rate compared to the tsunami of premium app services circa 2023.
ABC iView, on the other hand, went south as interest in Doctor Who and Endeavour dried up. Bluey continues to punch hardest for the app.
7 Plus benefited from a surge in demand for The Rookie to take 2nd spot.
