On Line Video Subs Surpass 1B For First Time

The Covid-19 pandemic, which kept people around the world mostly at home last year, is fueling record growth in the home/mobile entertainment market, reports The L-A Business Journal.

Subscriptions to online video services in 2020 surpassed one billion for the first time, reaching 1.1 billion globally and growing 26% from 2019, according to a new report from the Motion Picture Association.

The home/mobile entertainment market reached $68.8 billion in global revenue, marking a 23% increase over 2019. In the United States, subscriptions reached 308.6 million, up 32% from 2019, while the home/mobile market increased 21%, reaching $30 billion.

The surge in the digital entertainment market helped partially offset the decrease in the global box office caused by theater closures during the pandemic. The global theatrical and home/mobile entertainment market reached $80.8 billion last year, an 18% decrease from 2019.

The Motion Picture Association’s 2020 Theme Report includes in-depth data into how the film, television, and streaming industry performed during the year, as well as audience demographic information. Other findings in the report include:

• During the pandemic period of 2020, 55% of U.S. adults said their viewing of movies or shows/series through an online subscription service increased, while 46% reported their viewing via pay TV increased.
• More than 85% of children and more than 55% of adults watch movies or shows/series on mobile devices.
• Daily viewers of movies or shows/series on mobile devices skew more heavily towards the 18-24 and 25–39 year-old age groups, as well as the Hispanic/Latino and Black ethnicity groups.

The global box office market for all films around the world was $12 billion in 2020, including $2.2 billion for the U.S. and Canada box office market. The top three box office markets outside the U.S. and Canada were China with $3 billion, Japan with $1.3 billion and France with $500 million.

In the United States and Canada, 162 million people, or 46%, went to the cinema at least once in 2020. Per capita attendance was highest among the 12-17 age group and among the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity category.