In the third quarter of 2024, Netflix was the most popular subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service in the United Kingdom, capturing a market share of ** percent based on users' interest in adding content to their watch lists. Amazon Prime Video followed closely with a market share of ** percent, while Disney+ ranked third with a market share of ** percent.

The UK streaming market remains highly competitive, with Netflix maintaining its lead despite facing strong competition. As of March 2025, Netflix held a ***** percent market share, closely followed by Amazon Prime Video at ***** percent. This narrow gap between the top two players highlights the intense battle for viewers in the British streaming landscape.

In the second quarter of 2024, the majority of new SVOD customers signed up for a Disney+ subscription in Great Britain. Global streaming providers Amazon Prime Video and Discovery+ gained the second and third-highest shares of subscribers. Between June 2020 and June 2023, the share of new video-on-demand subscribers in the region mainly belonged to Amazon Prime Video, which gained between ** and ** percent of new subscribers per quarter. However, Amazon's market share has fallen since then.

After a decline in revenue between 2021 and 2022, the online audiovisual revenue in the United Kingdom grew again from 2022 to 2023, jumping to 5.4 billion British pounds. The value generally increased in the past decade due to the growing popularity of video streaming services.

Between 2024 and 2028, the entertainment and media market in the United Kingdom is expected to grow at a **** percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) and reach *** billion British pounds. Shifting consumer habits shape the industry’s future The entertainment and media sector is a dynamic and fast-paced ecosystem that is constantly adapting to the ever-evolving needs and demands of consumers. As such, the industry contains some of the sectors most heavily affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, alongside others that were among its primary beneficiaries. For example, SVOD revenue in the UK jumped by approximately ** percent amid national lockdowns during the first year of the pandemic, while UK box office revenues simultaneously plummeted by ** percent. And even though some traditional media formats are already experiencing an uplift in demand and revenues, recovery is not equally as swift across the UK’s entire media and entertainment landscape. Media and entertainment is on a global upward path The continuous growth of the UK market is in line with overarching global industry trends. In 2023, the global entertainment and media market was valued at *** trillion U.S. dollars, and according to the latest projections, this figure will reach *** trillion by 2028. A more in-depth look at the future of the E&M industry reveals that virtual reality, cinema, and data consumption were expected to see the highest growth rates among all media and entertainment segments in the next few years, whereas traditional media such as newspapers are set to experience negative growth.

The United Kingdom (UK) has the highest number of Netflix subscribers in Europe, with around ** million subscribers as of the second quarter of 2010. The country with the second highest number was Germany with around **** million, closely followed by France with *** million. Netflix catalogues across Europe Not only does the UK have the highest number of Netflix subscribers in Europe, it’s also the country with the highest number of TV series on the SVoD (Subscription Video-on-Demand) platform. As of September 2019, there were *** series available in the UK but just *** in Germany.   SVoD market share  At ** percent, Netflix had the largest share of the SVoD market in Europe in 2020. Their closest competitor was Amazon Prime Video, which had over a quarter of the market share in Europe that year. The fourth largest and one of the newest services, Disney+, reached a market share of ***** percent. In the European Union, its revenue amounted to nearly *** million euros as of 2020.

Netflix continues to dominate the UK streaming landscape, with **** million households subscribing to the service in the first quarter of 2025. This marks a significant increase from **** million subscribers in the same period of the previous year, demonstrating the platform's enduring popularity despite fierce competition in the video-on-demand landscape. Netflix's competitors While Netflix remains the leading subscription video-on-demand service in the UK in terms of customer numbers, Amazon Prime Video boasts the largest content library among major SVOD platforms, with over **** thousand hours of content available as of May 2024. However, when it comes to market share based on user interest, Netflix still holds the top spot, edging out providers such as Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and Apple TV+. Demographic preferences Interestingly, streaming preferences vary across age groups. Among viewers aged 65 and above, Amazon Prime Video is the preferred choice in the UK for ** percent, while Netflix captures one-third of this demographic. This contrasts with the overall market dominance of Netflix, suggesting that older audiences may have different content preferences. The generational divide in streaming habits is further illustrated by data from Flanders in Belgium, where millennials show a slightly higher Netflix usage rate compared to Gen Z, both significantly outpacing older age groups.

By 2026, around ** million Europeans are forecast to have a Netflix subscription. In 2020 this figure stood at just below ** million Netflix subscribers in Europe. As of the first quarter of 2021, Netflix had almost *** million paying subscribers worldwide. History of Netflix Netflix was founded in the United States in 1997, offering media through online streams or through a DVD-by-mail service. Now, the service is available across more than *** countries globally and boasts revenues of almost ** billion U.S. dollars. As of the first quarter of 2020, its leading markets included the U.S., Brazil, and the UK, although it is popular across many European countries. Video-on-Demand Despite some European countries having access to as many as around *** legal options for Video-on-Demand services, in terms of use there are two clear front runners. As of 2020, Netflix held a market share of almost ** percent of the Subscription Video-on-Demand services in the EU, while Amazon came second with about a third of the market.

Subscription video on demand (SVOD) revenues will continue to see yearly growth in Europe until at least 2022, according to the latest forecast. By 2022, SVOD revenue in Europe could reach over * billion euros. As the SVOD business model increases its share of the VOD market, transactional video on demand (TVOD) is likely to suffer.

Subscriber numbers in Europe

There are many different SVOD services available throughout Europe, but none dominate the market like Netflix and, to a lesser extent, Amazon. Looking at the number of subscribers to SVOD services in Europe, it is clear who the market leader is.

Netflix movies by country

Not every country in Europe has the same range of movies available on Netflix. There is far more choice in the United Kingdom and Ireland than anywhere else. As of September 2019, there were 2425 movies available in the UK. In Hungary, there were just 570.