According to the report, Netflix continues to dominate SVOD content investment, contributing 30% of total SVoD content spend and 6% of total global content investment in 2021.
The global content spend jumped by 14% in 2021 to more than $220bn and is expected to reach $230bn by 2022, according to new forecasts and data from Ampere Analysis.
With Covid lockdowns driving unprecedented subscription growth, OTT services increased content investment by 20% versus 2020, to nearly $50bn, despite the production shutdowns also caused by Covid-19.
Hannah Walsh, research manager at Ampere Analysis explained that in 2022, we expect content investment to exceed $230bn, primarily driven by subscription streaming services, as the battle in the original content arena intensifies – both in the US, but also in the global markets which are increasingly key for growth.
The research group found that Netflix continues to dominate SVOD content investment, contributing 30% of total SVOD content spend and 6% of total global content investment in 2021. Netflix is the third-largest investor in professional video content at a group level ($14bn), behind Comcast and its subsidiaries ($22.7bn), and Disney ($18.6bn).
“Comcast and Disney invest heavily in sports rights, which —alongside their hefty investments in original content — contributed to their leading positions in the table,” said Walsh. “Sports rights made up over a third of both Comcast and Disney’s spend in 2021.”
Content expenditure by commercial and public service broadcasters also bounded back in 2021, after being damaged in the prior year by ad spend cut-backs and production halts during the earlier phases of the Covid-19 pandemic, Ampere reported.
Despite this recovery, content spend from these groups still remains below 2019 levels, largely due to ongoing pressures on revenue (primarily TV advertising revenue)—a consequence of a mixture of viewing shifts to online video, and lingering economic effects influencing advertiser expenditure.
The report noted that all spend data is on a P&L basis and excludes theatrical production and exploitation costs. Disney+, Apple+, HBO Max, Peacock & Paramount+ content spend is for original content only and does not include the back catalogue of content acquired from their studio parent groups.
