First-Ever U.K. SVOD Figures Show Breaking Bad as Top Draw

LONDON: Research from GfK's first-ever SVOD Content Consumption study, which examined audience figures and sign-up drivers for these services in the U.S. and U.K., highlights the importance of drama series in the streaming landscape.

In the U.K., Breaking Bad was the most streamed program during the survey period, nabbing 11.9 percent of all streams. This was followed in a distant second by Dexter (4 percent), then Prison Break (3.5 percent), House of Cards (3.1 percent) and The Walking Dead (2 percent). In the U.S. it was a tighter race for the top spots. House of Cards was the most streamed, with 4.6 percent of all streams, just ahead of Breaking Bad, with 4.3 percent. The rest of the top five in the U.S. featured Dexter (3.8 percent), The Walking Dead (3.5 percent) and Orange Is the New Black (1.9 percent).

The research also found that the top five reasons for subscribing to an SVOD service are the same in both markets. The top reason cited in both countries is access to back catalogues of movies, then access to back catalogues of TV shows. Access to new movie releases was the third most popular reason. Respondents in the U.K. and the U.S. also cited the ability to watch at a time that suits them and the ability to watch multiple episodes in a row.