Netflix loses a million subscribers in Spain

The latest 'Entertainment on Demand' study by Kantar Worldpanel in Spain reveals that in the first quarter of 2023, the number of households that accessed at least one streaming video service in Spain decreased (292,000 compared to the previous quarter, which represents 11.9 million or 64% of households).

At the beginning of February, Netflix launched its most talked-about campaign against password sharing in Spain, which has resulted in a immediate loss of a million users. Netflix hopes that, over time, many of these users will return to the service by paying a subscription, but the current trend shows that this is far from guaranteed. The platform almost tripled its abandonment rate in the quarter compared to the previous period, and about half of the users who left the platform said they will not pay for the service.

Curiously there is no strong demographic bias of users who canceled their account, indicating a more outright rejection of measures to end shared passwords. On the other hand, Kantar's projections for the next quarter are worrying: 10% of subscribers who stayed with Netflix say they plan to unsubscribe in the second quarter of the year, a figure well above the average observed in previous quarters.

As to SkyShowtime, a new player in the Spanish SVoD market, had a successful launch in a highly competitive market, capturing almost one in three new subscribers in the first quarter of 2023. As a launch promotion, SkyShowtime followed the example of HBO Max with a half-price forever offer for subscribers who signed up during the launch period. It clearly had a strong impact on consumers, with 69% stating that value for money was a key reason for signing up to the new service. The successful program Yellowstone proved to be a huge draw for new subscribers and was the leading most enjoyed program across all services among new SkyShowtime users.

Despite the launch of SkyShowtime, Prime Video It maintained its first place in new subscribers, with a share of 34%. The Lord of the Rings, the Rings of Power continued to be the title that attracted the most subscribers to Prime Video in the first quarter of 2023, with an uninterrupted streak of 9 months, indicating that this title is paying off.

Prime Video's investment in its streaming interface is starting to pay off, with a higher proportion of subscribers satisfied with its “ease of use” than with Netflix, with the first quarter of 2023 being the first time this trend has been observed.

More than half of the Netflix users lost in the quarter had a Prime Video subscription, meaning Amazon remains well positioned to see increased share in the coming quarters.