Netflix transformed the way we are entertained. You can now stream any show or movie you want to any device as long as you have a decent wifi signal. New innovators are cashing in. Disney+, AppleTV+, HBO Max recently joined Hulu and Amazon Prime Video as competitors to take on Netflix. But whether or not other platforms will ever dethrone the O.G. streaming service remains in question.

You now have access to our latest consumer insights report: The Social Insights Report on Streaming Trends and Consumer Behaviors. It uncovers brand new insights on streaming and about how consumers think about streaming services and the content they love most according to social listening.

To preview what’s inside, below are 4 burning questions we set out to answer inside our report.

Q1: What streaming service rises to the top, according to consumers?

It's not enough to just look at viewership data. By combining social conversations from engaged consumers, including our custom-built “watching” metric, sentiment, and subscriber data, a clearer picture emerges.

Conversational analysis of online posts shows that consumers discuss the streaming platforms in these ways:

• Netflix leads in number of subscribers AND number of people who mention “watching”
• Both Amazon Prime Video and AppleTV+ trail in “watching” conversations, but they still are among the top in number of subscribers
• Hulu’s biggest gap is consumer sentiment (in our report, we analyze why consumers have negative experiences with Hulu)

In the above insight, you see the overlay of subscribers, number of social conversations mentioning “watch” or “watching”, and the sentiment analysis for each streaming service. This social listening data helped find the answer of which streaming service leads, according to consumers.

Q 2: What is the impact of Disney+ on the market?

When Disney+ announced their new streaming service, many wondered how successful the service would be in an already crowded market. But their launch in the fall of 2019 proved there was room at the table.

Social conversational trends show: 

• Disney+ intercepted conversations from industry leader Netflix, giving them a boost during their launch
• One interesting find was the trending conversation and emergence of Disney+ conversation on “Netflix and Chill” comments
• Since last fall, Disney+ is the second most mentioned streaming platform online
• AppleTV+, which launched around the time of Disney+, has a large subscriber base, but hasn’t caught on within consumer conversations. Driving more online engagement could help boost AppleTV+ viewership.

Q3: What impact does a release schedule have on a series?

Content that sustains long-term social conversation has real staying power. One way to accomplish this is timed release for series, rather than dropping all at once.

Consumers talk online about shows they love or highly anticipate, and typically the conversation will keep going as new episodes are released over time.

Inside our report, we looked at how this conversation helps boost the long-term success of streaming shows. Social analysis of conversations of various series and their release schedules reveals:

• A series with a longer release schedule can lead to more social conversation over a longer period of time
• Shows like The Mandelorian, which released weekly, received a high number of conversations AND sustained conversations
• Ozark, which released all at once, had a similar number of mentions as The Mandelorian. However, The Mandelorian sustained its conversational share for twice as long as Ozark.
• Established hits like Stranger Things break the trend and garner high conversational volume for longer periods of time, especially if they are in later seasons.

Q4: What makes a viral documentary and who is watching them?

Shows with particular elements captivate certain audiences and turn them into loyal viewers. Perhaps nowhere is this more true than for the documentary genre.

Successful documentaries draw their audiences in by using elements of shock and awe, driving consumer emotions which attracts different types of viewers

Social listening insights pinpointed how certain audiences mention documentaries, including the types of emotions they express and what the typical audience is for each program.

Here are some fascinating takeaways conversational analysis uncovered:

• The most viral documentaries had viewership of millennials and drove sentimental and emotional posts about those documentaries
• The massively popular Tiger King had the most online mentions, the top emotion for viewers was “surprise”, and the leading viewer was older millennial male
• Miss America was most appealing to Gen Z females based in New York and elicited a lot of the “love” emotion
• Game Changers is the most positively discussed documentary and it appealed most to Gen X males

Conclusion

To compete in the streaming market, you’ll need the right data to go beyond subscribers and viewership numbers to understand how the world watches. To get a clear picture of consumer experiences for streaming platforms, you need to tune in to how they describe those experiences.

Using social listening technology, you can begin to understand the why-- the motivations for subscribing, the feelings about specific services, and the content consumers crave.

Don’t miss other topics covered inside the report such as:

• How must-watch content varies by who recommends a show
• Details behind why documentary preferences have evolved
• How exclusive content from Disney+ drove launch conversation
• Why Hulu’s sentiment skews more negative than others
• What shows drive viewership during winter holidays

Download the report by clicking the image below: