In recent years, the popularity of subscription video-on-demand services has brought more choices for consumers as well as an increase in competition for well-established video giants like Netflix, with traditional television networks and video providers tapping into the format. As of December 2022, 26 percent of young viewers reported watching traditional television a lot less due to their online video consumption. In comparison, less than 10 percent of audiences aged 35 and older reported the same impact on their viewing habits.
Online video subscriptions might not be the only challenge that traditional TV will have to endure in the next years. In parallel of being the quintessential video platform of the internet, YouTube is increasingly equated to mainstream TV, with YouTube TV users reporting to be more likely to subscribe to streaming services due to the possibility of watching things whenever they wanted.
From live TV to live streaming
As of October 2022, over 40 percent of U.S. users reported watching online video daily, with 53 percent of users aged between 18 and 34 years reporting to watch content online daily. Social video was among the most engaging types of online content, with 38 percent of U.S. viewers reporting to watch comedy or viral videos as of the third quarter of 2022. In 2022, users in the U.S. were estimated to have spent approximately 43 minutes of their daily time watching social video content.In September 2022, Instagram Reels collected the largest amount of likes among short video features, while YouTube Shorts content generated less than 30 million likes among U.S. users in the examined month. By comparison, video sensation TikTok generated around one billion interactions and likes from U.S. users. Live streaming is also becoming increasingly popular among U.S. audiences, with social media and social video platform embracing the format: Instagram and TikTok ranked as the most popular platforms among users aged between 18 and 34 years to watch live content.