Media ownership evolves as streaming and on-demand services continue to surge

Our video research has indicated that consumers are gradually shifting away from traditional media formats, as the focus on streaming and ‘digital ownership’ grows

What is happening?
The past 20 years have brought a surge of changes to media distribution, formats, technologies, and consumption patterns. Changing consumer behaviour means that online streaming and TV and video on-demand services such as iPlayer, Netflix and Amazon Prime are pushing growth in ‘digital ownership’ – while investment in traditional formats such as DVDs is declining.

Why?
Busy lives and smaller living spaces are exacerbating the need for content to be streamed on-demand.

More and more people living in densely populated urban areas, with limited space. Streaming services have managed to fill a gap in the market, which allows viewers to feel like they have ownership to an extent, but without any of the ‘clutter’ that comes with it.

Furthermore, a combination of online streaming and video-on-demand services creates flexibility for consumers, which means that media consumption is easier than ever. There is no need to plan ahead and wait for programs or films to be premiered on television, there is a monthly subscription rather than a cost per unit, and individuals have access to films and television programs from collections that are far greater than any one person could own.

What next?
‘Access’ is progressively becoming more important than ‘ownership’ – so re-emphasising what it means to have ‘physical ownership’ over media could help to steady this decline.