Despite ongoing concerns about consumer spending, the streaming industry saw significant growth in the first half of 2024.

According to Digital Entertainment Group (DEG), revenue from subscription streaming services increased 27.1%, reaching nearly $22.9 billion, up from $18 billion over the same period in 2023.

The DEG report, backed by Hollywood studios, showed that total consumer spending on movies and TV shows, both at home and on the go, rose to nearly $25.4 billion in the first six months of 2024, up more than 22% from the $20.8 billion spent in the first half of 2023. In the second quarter alone, year-over-year growth was 21.2%, totaling nearly $12.8 billion.

The growth in streaming revenues is due to the continued expansion of subscription services, which have attracted new subscribers through targeted content, professional sports offerings, flexible pricing and the introduction of ad-supported plans. In the second quarter of 2024, consumer spending on subscription streaming alone exceeded $11.5 billion, an increase of more than 27%.

Advertising-supported video-on-demand (AVOD) content and free advertising-supported streaming TV (FAST) content also contributed significantly to the industry’s financial performance.

Omdia estimates that these services generated approximately $5.4 billion in advertising revenue in the second quarter of 2024. This represents a 51% increase year-over-year and is in stark contrast to the 5.5% decline in advertising revenue reported for the second quarter of 2023.

However, not all market segments fared so well. Box office numbers for titles released for home theater in the first half of 2024 were nearly 20% lower than in 2023, resulting in lower spending on transactional formats such as digital purchases and rentals. The decline was partly due to the absence of major releases such as The Super Mario Bros. Movie in 2023, which significantly impacted last year’s numbers.

In the physical media market, sales of DVDs, Blu-rays and 4K UHD Blu-rays continued to decline, with a 28.5% drop in the second quarter and 22.2% in the first half of the year. New releases were largely responsible for this decline, while catalog titles fared better, declining just 2%, suggesting some stability in the market. Collectible disc formats, particularly SteelBooks and 4K UHD Blu-ray catalog titles, were in high demand, with sales increasing 44% and 16%, respectively.