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By R.T. Watson
The number of subscriptions to online video streaming services worldwide reached 1.1 billion in 2020, according to data released Thursday by the Motion Picture Association – a further milestone in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic that has maintained people locked in, looking for their entertainment. at home.
Meanwhile, global box office revenues fell from over $ 30 billion in the year to $ 12 billion, as movie theaters were closed in the United States and other parts of the world. world, according to the association. The drop comes after box office revenues hit a record $ 42.3 billion in 2019, the MPA also said. And China overtook the United States last year as the top country for box office revenue, he said.
The shift in consumer and Hollywood behavior over the past year has spurred the historic growth of companies like Netflix Inc. and Walt Disney Co.’s streaming services as people turn to digital options available in their homes. and on mobile devices, streaming subscriptions increased by 26% over the previous year. In the United States alone, the number of streaming subscriptions increased 32% last year to a total of 308.6 million, the MPA said.
Even now, as movie theaters in many parts of the world have reopened, the direct-to-consumer streaming model is the dominant growth strategy in Hollywood’s biggest studios and in tech giants Silicon. Valley that compete with them. The world’s largest streaming service, Netflix, recently surpassed 200 million subscriptions worldwide. Disney has over 100 million subscribers to its Disney +, which is not even two years old.
While box office revenues have plummeted globally, gains in digital home entertainment revenues have helped offset those losses, according to the MPA. Revenue from direct-to-consumer offers, which include streaming and online rentals, climbed to $ 61.8 billion last year, from $ 47.2 billion in 2019, he said.
Reflecting the industry as a whole, the substance of the Motion Picture Association’s annual report has evolved in recent years, with direct-to-consumer digital distribution revenues now surpassing global box office revenues. In 2019, the MPA, considered the main advocate for Hollywood’s biggest movie studios, welcomed Netflix into its ranks even though the company does not rely on selling movie tickets as part of its business model.
With the increase in subscribers and streaming services, Hollywood is producing more content, especially episodic series, which engage customers longer than feature films. In 2020, the number of scripted and unscripted series created by U.S. production companies and distributed on online platforms climbed to a total of 537 shows, from 381 the year before, the MPA said.
As new streaming services enter the US market – Comcast Corp. and ViacomCBS Inc. have also launched platforms – Amazon.com Inc. and AT&T Inc.’s HBO Max are following in Disney and Netflix’s footsteps in stepping up efforts to strengthen their share of international markets.
During last year’s widespread lockdowns, some of the country’s largest movie theater chains struggled to stay afloat as box office revenues in the United States and Canada fell to $ 2.2 billion. in 2020, up from $ 11.4 billion in 2019, according to the MPA report.
In 2020, China overtook the United States for the first time as the world’s largest box office market, generating $ 3 billion in ticket sales, according to the report.
US theaters are reopening in key states like New York and California, but so far attendance has been slow as many Americans seem reluctant to return en masse to indoor public spaces.
On Friday, the world’s largest theater chain, AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc., announced that it will have 98% of its U.S. theaters operational. It’s a big turnaround after the pandemic nearly forced the company to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Hollywood’s biggest studios are hoping cinema will rebound this summer. Potential blockbusters like Disney’s Marvel movie “Black Widow” and the latest installment in the Fast & Furious franchise, “F9” – distributed by Comcast’s Universal Pictures – will test the willingness of American moviegoers to head to the multiplex again. “Black Widow” is slated for May while “F9” is released in June.
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