The streaming service performed favorably during the second quarter, compared to its competitors who are floundering.
When it comes to streaming content, Netflix is still the primary name that sits at the top of many viewers' minds, but in a market that has also been penetrated by the likes of Disney+, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, and others, Paramount+ is slowly but surely inching its way to the top, even if it's at least in terms of revenue. In fact, Paramount Global announced this week that its flagship Paramount+ service has reached 43.3 million paid customers.
Engadget reported that Paramount+ has added up to 3.7 million subscribers in the second quarter even after withdrawing from Russia due to its invasion of Ukraine. If it hadn't, they would have added even more with 4.9 million Paramount+ subscribers.
Paramount Global Credits Expansion and Content for Increased Performance
The increase of Paramount+ subscribers was partially attributed to the company's expansion to countries such as the UK, Ireland, and South Korea. Paramount Global also believes that their unique content offerings such as the "Halo" series, "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds," films such as "Sonic the Hedgehog 2" and live "Champions League" matches are also why they have increased subscribers this quarter.
The streaming service is still tapping into its sci-fi audience, but not as much as it previously had. Today, Paramount+ subscribers are still a fraction of Netflix's at 220.7 million and Amazon Prime Video with more than 200 million. However, its growth is still a benefit compared to Netflix's loss of almost one million subscribers.
Despite having only a fraction of the number of subscribers of other streaming giants, Paramount+ has in fact had the most sign-ups and net additions of any US-based premium subscription streaming service during the second quarter. This means that the company had surpassed its competitors, such as Apple TV+, Hulu and Peacock, Antenna data showed.
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Paramount+ Captures Market Share in Q2
Paramount CEO Bob Bakish was happy to report that the streaming service took market share during the second quarter, Variety reported. In prepared remarks, he said that, "Our deep and growing library of valuable IP, coupled with the strength of our best-in-class assets, ensures we are well-positioned to continue to maximize value for our shareholders."
Moreover, Paramount+'s revenue more than doubled during the second quarter with $672 million. Overall direct-to-consumer revenue also saw a 56% increase to $1.19 billion. Meanwhile, its operating losses for the DTC segment had unfortunately tripled to $445 million, thereby impacting Paramount's bottom line.
Paramount remains fiercely competitive going into the future. Back in February, it announced that its global streaming subscriber target for 2024 has been raised from 65 million to 75 million to more than 100 million. It also plans to increase spending on streaming content to over $6 billion by 2024, an increase of about $4 billion.
Paramount+ is home to entertainment, live sports and news from the company's networks such as CBS, BET, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon and MTV. It also offers original series such as Taylor Sheridan's "1883" and unscripted shows such as "RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars." The streaming service offers two tiers, with the ad-supported Essential Plan at $4.99 monthly and the ad-free Premium Plan at $9.99 monthly.
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