Americans stuck inside their homes during the coronavirus pandemic are watching television at a rate three times the norm, according to new data from a company that operates a streaming guide app.
Netflix traffic has increased 332 percent since March 17, but it’s not the only streaming platform that has seen a massive increase in traffic, according to JustWatch, which owns a popular streaming guide app. Disney Plus (290 percent), Amazon Prime Video (266 percent) and Hulu (259 percent) all have seen major upticks in traffic, according to JustWatch.
“It’s not just Netflix that profits from the epidemic,” a JustWatch press release said.
The data did not originate from the major streaming companies but from JustWatch. Its app allows users to search and view the schedule of every major streaming platform in one place. Users also can receive notifications about new shows and personal recommendations.
Netflix said in April it attracted nearly 16 million new subscribers the first three months of this year – almost twice the amount it gained in the first three months of 2019. All total, it has 182.9 million subscribers.
“Netflix is and will continue to be the media company least impacted by Covid-19,” eMarketer analyst Eric Haggstrom told the BBC. “Their business is a near perfect fit to a population that is suddenly housebound.”
Still, Netflix warned its future growth could be harmed as lockdowns ease. Production of its original programs has also been halted due to the pandemic.
“In our 20+ year history, we have never seen a future more uncertain or unsettling,” Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said this month. “The coronavirus has reached every corner of the world, and, in the absence of a widespread treatment or vaccine, no one knows how or when this terrible crisis will end. What’s clear is the escalating human cost in terms of lost lives and lost jobs, with tens of millions of people now out of work.”
Meanwhile, Disney Plus – which launched last year – said this month it had 54.5 million subscribers. That’s up from the 33.5 million it reported on March 28 and the 50 million it said it had on April 8.
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Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Deagreez
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
