The home entertainment industry’s transition to digital streaming looks to be nearly complete, but the digital content streaming industry still has a huge amount of room for growth in the coming years. Nearly every home in the developed world now has a device for streaming content, be it a purpose built device like an Amazon Fire TV stick or ROKU TV, a game console, or a smart TV, and the global streaming media device market is set to reach US$295.50 billion by 2027. This is fueling an ever growing demand for digital media content that is being filled by companies like BBTV (TSX:BBTV) (OTCQX:BBTVF), Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX), Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), and Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS).
BBTV Distributes Content to Leading Streaming Platforms
A rapidly expanding digital content streaming marketplace means there is growing demand for a never ending stream of content aimed at a wide array of markets and demographics. BBTV (TSX:BBTV) (OTCQX:BBTVF) is one of the digital media companies helping to feed this insatiable demand. Based in Vancouver, Canada, BBTV is a digital media and technology company that works with influencers of all sizes to drive viewership and monetization. As of August 2020, BBTV had the second most unique monthly viewers among digital platforms, with more than 600 million globally.
In 2015, BBTV acquired YoBoHo, a digital entertainment company that specializes in video content across a range of verticals, from Family Entertainment, to Lifestyle on a global scale. The company’s YoBoHo New Media subsidiary is focused on distribution and monetization of content on various digital platforms.
On February 11, BBTV announced that YoBoHo has partnered with Over-the-Top and Connected TV marketing platform Allroll to bring YoBoHo’s kids, knowledge, and cooking-oriented content to worldwide audiences on popular top streaming platforms Roku TV and Amazon Fire TV. This will include YoBoHo’s popular kids media brand Hooplakidz.
“Roku and Amazon Fire TV are notably some of the top video streaming platforms today featuring content for a considerably large number of active users,” YoBoHo CEO Hitendra Merchant said in BBTV’s release. “We’re excited to be able to reach out, acquire and sustain this audience with Allroll’s expertise in marketing our premium kids content curated for preschoolers, along with snackable content from YouCurious? And Cooking Co. for an older audience.”
In December 2020, BBTV announced that YoBoHo’s kids content, including HooplaKidz, had launched for streaming on Pluto TV in Latin America. Pluto TV is a ViacomCBS-owned streaming company with 36 million monthly active users and a footprint in 24 countries throughout Europe and the Americas.
“We’re incredibly excited to be a part of Viacom and Pluto TV’s growing distribution platform as we are committed to entertain and educate audiences around the world,” Merchant said in the company’s release. “This licensing and distribution partnership speaks to the high quality of our content, and our ability to monetize our vast library across a variety of different platforms and revenue opportunities.”
Major Platforms Leverage Content Libraries
Now that the marketplace for content streaming services is crowded, streaming platforms are in a war for market share, mainly fought with quality and quantity of content. Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) was the first mover in the streaming space, but the company is losing market share as competition grows. Despite this, Netflix’s paid memberships rose by 25% in quarter three last year. Aiding Netflix was a strong lineup of exclusive content, with three of the top five best received streaming series for the year appearing on the platform.
Amazon.com, Inc’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) Prime Video service has been hot on Netflix’s heels. Prime saw subscriber growth of 54.5% in the third quarter. The platform had the number one most enjoyed exclusive title for the quarter with the second season of ‘The Boys.’ Amazon’s Fire TV platform has also seen significant growth, reaching 50 million monthly active users, a 25% increase in reach since January 2020.
In contrast, Apple Inc’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) Apple TV+ service has struggled to gain viewers since its late 2019 launch, receiving only 4.9% of new video-on-demand subscribers in September 2020. This has been in part due to lukewarm reception of its original content and a limited library compared to competitors. Apple’s plans for original content production may have been upended by pandemic shutdowns throughout 2020. In January this year, Apple addressed the issue with the announcement of a range of exclusive content, including series following the rise and fall of the WeWork startup, starring Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway, as well as paying $25 million for the worldwide rights to Sundance Film Festival hit CODA. In February, Apple announced a multi-year partnership with Skydance Animation to develop animated kids and family programming.
Despite launching around the same time as Apple TV+, Walt Disney Co’s (NYSE:DIS) Disney Plus has had no trouble finding its audience, reaching 50 million subscribers in April 2020. Disney’s immediate success in the streaming space is unsurprising given the company’s expansive portfolio of recognizable IPs and back catalogue of films and shows. Smash hit series based on well-known brands like The Mandalorian and WandaVision and the inherent recognizability of the Disney brand have given the service a solid footing.
Content is king in the increasingly competitive digital streaming space and services are constantly hungry for more content to expand their libraries, creating huge opportunities for digital tech media companies like BBTV.
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