Newsletter 9th of May
NEWSLETTER
8 May 2024
These are the main topics this week:
- Mediavision: Three million SVOD subscriptions shared in the Nordics
- The Q1 earnings season is nearing the end
- Ice hockey World Championship starts on Friday
VIDEO
Mediavision: Three million SVOD subscriptions shared in the Nordics
Password sharing is a topic that has received a lot of attention in the past year. Also in the Nordics, SVOD services have communicated their intentions to restrict password sharing. Simply put, their wish is to get paid for all users that consume content on their platform. And as the market matures, the services need to find new ways to boost growth. There is a significant potential in converting password sharers into payers.
Some services have already applied a tougher strategy, and almost all are planning to implement stricter rules before long. So far, the outcome is a -10 percent decrease in shared subscriptions since spring 2023.
The potential is what attracts. A conversion of all shared subscriptions would mean a growth of 3 million new paid subscriptions in the Nordics. Theoretically, that would equal a revenue increase – seen across the Nordic region – of somewhere between EUR 200–300 million.
But there are also reasons to question such a strong outcome. Many households would likely choose not to subscribe if they are forced to pay for a full subscription, or opt for another less expensive alternative with advertising.
Read up on the full press release here, with commentary from Mediavision’s senior analyst Fredrik Liljeqvist
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Insight: Nordic TV & StreamingThis analysis covers both the TV- and streaming markets in the Nordic countries. It rests on three pillars: the consumers, the market, and the actors. Analyzing the consumers takes us far – but not all the way. Studying the actors and the market as a whole is just as important. |
EARNINGS
The Q1 earnings season is nearing the end
We are closing in on the end of the Q1 earnings season. Here are some of the highlights of this past week’s reports.
- Revenue for Apple fell 4% to USD 90.8 billion in Q1, and iPhone sales fell 10% YOY during the quarter, which Apple attributed to a tough comparison versus last year.
- Apple announced that its board had authorized USD 110 billion in share repurchases, the largest in company history.
- The company’s services business sales (including subscription services, warranties, licensing deals with search engines, and payments) rose 14.2% to USD 23.9 billion in Q1.
- Apple has a broad definition of subscribers, including users subscribing to apps through Apple’s App Store, which sums to over 1 billion paid subscriptions.
- Disney reported revenues that were roughly in line with analyst expectations.
- Revenues for the first quarter increased 1% to USD 22.1 billion, from USD 21.8 billion in the prior-year quarter.
- Entertainment streaming revenue (excluding ESPN+) increased 13% in the quarter to USD 5.64 billion and operating income was USD 47 million after a loss of USD 587 million a year prior.
- Disney+ Core subscribers increased by more than 6 million in the second quarter to 117.6 million global customers, and Disney+ Core ARPU increased by 44 cents.
- Sanoma’s net sales amounted to EUR 221 million, a slight increase YOY from EUR 218 million in Q1 2023.
- EBIT for Sanoma was EUR -31 million, compared to EUR -43 million in Q1 2023. Items affecting comparability (IACs) were positive and amounted to EUR 2 million, which was -2 EUR million in Q1 2023. Earnings improved in both business areas Learning and Media Finland.
- Sanoma’s outlook for 2024 remains unchanged, with expectations of net sales between EUR 1.29‒1.34 billion. Sanoma expects that the advertising market in Finland will decline slightly and the economic development of the group’s operating countries to be relatively stable.
- Storytel’s revenue increased 12% to 892 MSEK in Q1 2024, compared to 796 MSEK in Q1 2023.
- Streaming revenue increased 13% to 837 MSEK in Q1 2024, compared to 742 MSEK during the first quarter of 2023.
- Adjusted EBITDA increased by 167% from 39 MSEK in Q1 2023 to 104 MSEK in Q1 2024, equivalent to a margin of 11.7%, compared to 4.9% a year earlier.
- The average number of paying subscribers for Storytel amounted to 2,256 million in Q1 2024, compared to 2,041 million the same period last year.
Warner Bros Discovery is the last company in the media sector to report its Q1 result, which is tomorrow. A recap of their report will come in next week’s newslette
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Insight Media & MarketsThis analysis tracks the progress of individual and household payments per service and actor, as well as overall media expenditures. The primary focus is mapping out the allocation of expenditures across audio, video, text, and access. |
SPORTS
Ice hockey World Championship starts on Friday
he ice hockey World Championship starts this Friday. Czech Republic is hosting this year’s tournament, which is played over the next three weeks. All Nordic countries are qualified for the tournament, with Denmark, Finland and Norway playing in group A and will thereby face each other in the group stage. Sweden is placed in group B and can therefore only face another Nordic country in the knockout stages. Viaplay holds the broadcasting rights for the tournament throughout the Nordics, with its current rights agreement running until 2028.
New data from Mediavision shows that close to 2,5 million 15-74-year-olds in the Nordics are interested in watching the men’s ice hockey World Championship on TV/online, with highest interest in Finland and Sweden. This is presented in Mediavision’s Sports Analysis. The 2024 edition of Mediavision’s Sports Analysis will be published in a few weeks, covering 19 sports and over 100 specific sports rights. For more information on the Sports Analysis, please contact adrian.grande@mediavision.se.
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Sports AnalysisFor the fifth consecutive year, Mediavision presents the Sports Analysis. The analysis provides a comprehensive overview of the current Nordic sports rights market and an in-depth analysis of consumer interest, willingness to pay and pay rate. It covers 19 sports and +100 specific sports rights. |
Mediavision in the News
350.000 nordmenn strømmer TV med reklame – Kampanje
Så många har HVOD i Sverige – Dagens media
Hotet mot svenska elitidrotten – Aftonbladet
Denmark: HVOD, sport, password crackdown to boost streaming – Advanced Television
Mediavisons vd: Nya tider när globala streamers köper livesport – Dagens Media
Primes intåg stöper om sportmarknaden – Svenska Dagbladet
Mediavision: Growing demand for local content in the Nordics – Broadband TV News
Därför blir streamingtjänsterna allt dyrare – och sämre – PC för alla
Mediavision: Ad-Supported SVOD Gaining Traction in the Nordics – Media Play News
Efterspørgslen på nordisk tv-indhold stiger men udbuddet kan ikke følge med – Mediawatch
Sweden: Interest growing in ad-supported streaming – Advanced Television
Svenskar vill se mer svenskt på streamad tv – Sveriges Radio
Industry Events
Northern Waves: 24th October, Oslo, Norway
* Mediavision will attend
** Mediavision will present