The UK should soon have a much clearer picture of just how dominant Netflix is - or isn’t – among TV viewers.
The streamer has officially joined British audience measurement company BARB (Broadcasters Audience Research Board), making it “the first industry-owned public currency in the world to be joined by Netflix,” according to the organization. (Netflix’s audience has been measured by Nielsen in the US for years, although there is no formal agreement with the company).
While BARB has been reporting streaming viewing at both the service and program levels since November, only its host organizations and those with a special license had access to the data. As BARB’s licensee, effective November 1 of this year, Netflix viewing data, along with all streaming viewing that accounts for more than 0.5 percent of total identified viewing, will be reported to BARB’s customers and on BARB’s website at the same way viewing is reported for all other channels and VOD services reported by BARB.
“Back in 2019, at the RTS conference in Cambridge, I welcomed the idea of Netflix’s audience being measured independently,” Netflix co-CEO Reed Hastings said. “We have been in touch with BARB ever since and are delighted to be committed to the reliable measurement of how people watch TV in the UK”
According to BARB, in 2022 so far, broadcasters’ linear channels and on-demand services account for around two-thirds of all identified viewing in the UK, while SVOD/AVOD services account for around one-sixth of all viewing. In September, while the BBC and ITV dominated viewing, averaging 56.08 minutes and 32.08 minutes per day, Netflix topped Channel 4 with 19.29 minutes compared to 16.45 minutes. Meanwhile, Comcast’s Sky attracted an average of 14.10 minutes of viewing per day, followed by Paramount Global’s Channel 5 with 12.07 minutes, Amazon Prime Video with 8.26 minutes and Disney+ with 7.14 minutes.
The average daily viewing time for operator services is 159 minutes, and the average for SVOD/AVOD services is 36 minutes per day.
“Our audience measurement is constantly adapting to accommodate the new platforms and devices people are using to watch their favorite TV shows,” said Justin Sampson, CEO of BARB. “We took a big step forward last year when we started reporting audiences to streaming services. Netflix’s commitment to BARB sends a clear signal that what we do is valuable to new and established players in the market.”
Also starting in November, BARB will expand its weekly coverage of the top 50 shows to include shows on all linear channels and SVOD service providers. This will cement BARB’s ranking as the most comprehensive and representative record of the UK’s most watched shows.
While Netflix and other streaming services have clearly established themselves in the TV viewing ecosystem, broadcasters continue to account for the lion’s share of viewing in the UK