Though the company said the linear rebrand is a “first-of-its-kind” multiplatform brand to integrate both streaming and linear content, experts told Adweek it’s just another example of the ongoing TV trend of consolidation. It could also be confusing for consumers, as the linear channel won’t have all the streaming programming despite having the same name.
Peacock is flying
Ahead of this summer’s Olympics in Paris, NBCUniversal’s Peacock is narrowing its losses and significantly growing its streaming base.
Parent company Comcast said Peacock reached 28 million subscribers at the end of Q3. And in December 2023, Comcast CEO Mike Cavanaugh revealed to investors that the streaming service climbed even higher to 30 million paid subscribers—doubling the 15 million it ended 2022 with.
The transparency is a significant shift for NBCUniversal, which, until the end of last year, only reported total sign-ups versus paid subscribers.
Subscriber numbers? Who knows!
Despite Peacock sharing numbers and Netflix even revealing its viewership hours, that transparency hasn’t rubbed off on other streamers.
For instance, Apple TV+ and Prime Video are still keeping their subscriber totals to themselves,
Though Prime Video hasn’t revealed its exact numbers, the Amazon Prime service has more than 200 million paying customers. Prime Video is also the exclusive home of Thursday Night Football and broadcasted the first NFL Black Friday game in 2023.
It’s also home to hits like The Boys, Gen V and I’m a Virgo, and its AVOD counterpart Freevee enjoyed breakout hits such as Jury Duty in 2023. Amazon also added a slate of Prime Video original series to the free streamer.
But this is the last year Prime Video remains without ad breaks, introducing limited advertisements starting Jan. 29. Though it currently costs $14.99 per month (and is also included in the $139 yearly Prime subscription), an ad-free tier will be available for an additional $2.99 per month.
That makes Apple TV+ the only major streaming service left without commercial breaks.
While home to a host of original content like Ted Lasso, For All Mankind and Slow Horses, Apple made its mark in the sports streaming world in 2023 with the launch of MLS Streaming Pass after landing a 10-year streaming rights deal that made the company the exclusive home of Major League Soccer.
However, soccer aside, time will tell if the service ever reveals its subscriber goals—or just how long it remains an ad-tier holdout.
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