The Gauge: YouTube Is America's Top Choice for Streaming

April saw record-breaking viewership: the NCAA women’s basketball tournament coverage on broadcast and cable, and Amazon Prime Video’s new original series Fallout, which set a new high watermark for the streamer as its most successful program to date. From an overall usage perspective, time spent watching TV was fairly flat both month-over-month (down 2%) and on an annual basis (down 0.6%).

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Across the primary viewing categories:

• Cable was the only category in The Gauge to escape decline as it achieved a second consecutive monthly increase in share, moving up from 28.3% of TV in March to 29.1% (+0.8 pt.) in April. Cable sports viewing increased 28% vs. March, bolstered by NCAA basketball tournament coverage, NBA playoffs and the NFL draft. Women’s NCAA basketball finals and semifinals coverage accounted for four of the top six cable telecasts in April, and the WNBA draft notched 17th. While cable viewing increased about 1% on a monthly basis, a year-over-year comparison shows viewing has declined 8.2% vs. April 2023, and its share has lost 2.4 points.
• Broadcast viewing was down 3% in April, which equated to a 22.2% share of TV (-0.3 pt.). Similar to cable, women’s sports were the bright spot in the broadcast category this month. The NCAA women’s basketball championship game drew 17.6 million viewers on ABC (plus over 1 million more tuned in on ESPN), making it the top broadcast telecast in April by a large margin. The drama genre accounted for 29% of broadcast viewing, driven by Tracker, NCIS and Young Sheldon on CBS, and Chicago Fire and Chicago Med on NBC.
• Streaming viewership declined 1.9% from March to April, prompting the category to lose just 0.1 share point to account for 38.4% of total television. Amazon Prime Video saw the largest increase among streaming services this month with a 12% monthly increase for 3.2% of TV (+0.4 pt.). Prime Video’s April success was driven by its original series Fallout, which also topped all streaming titles this month with over 7 billion viewing minutes. YouTube, despite a 3% monthly decline in viewing, added a 15th month to its streak as the top streaming platform in The Gauge with a 9.6% share of TV in April.

Let’s break down the impact of YouTube on TV-viewing time:

• YouTube’s Popularity: YouTube has transformed from a platform for user-generated content to a major entertainment hub. It offers a vast library of videos, including music, tutorials, vlogs, and more.
• TV-Viewing Trends: Traditional TV viewership has faced challenges due to the rise of streaming services. People now have more options, including YouTube, Netflix, Hulu, and other streaming platforms.
• 10% Statistic: Spending nearly 10% of TV-viewing time on YouTube highlights its influence.
• Users turn to YouTube for various reasons: entertainment, education, news, and even relaxation.

Why YouTube?:

• Diverse Content: YouTube caters to diverse interests, from cooking shows to gaming streams.
• Personalization: Its recommendation algorithm tailors content to individual preferences.
• Accessibility: YouTube is accessible on various devices, making it convenient for users.
• Challenges for Traditional TV: Advertisers are shifting budgets to digital platforms, impacting traditional TV revenue. Streaming services offer ad-free experiences, further affecting TV networks.