Report: App-Based Video Service Revenues Hit $1.3 Billion in 2018

A new report by Sensor Tower Store Intelligence claims that mobile app users in the United States spent over $1.3 billion in 2018 on video-on-demand services like Netflix and Hulu. The data probably helps explain why Netflix recently stopped letting its customers pay for the service through the iPhone app: Apple’s cut is just too lucrative now.

“Mobile users in the United States spent an estimated $1.27 billion in the top 10 subscription video on demand (SVOD) apps last year,” according to Sensor Tower Store Intelligence data. “This represented year-over-year growth of 62 percent from the $781 million spent by consumers in the top SVOD apps during 2017. Mobile spending in these apps during 2018 was nearly three times more than in 2016.”

Windows Intelligence In Your Inbox

Sign up for our new free newsletter to get three time-saving tips each Friday — and get free copies of Paul Thurrott's Windows 11 and Windows 10 Field Guides (normally $9.99) as a special welcome gift!

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Netflix was the top performer in 2018, the firm says, with an estimated $529 million in revenues from in-app subscriptions, of which 30 percent (on the iPhone side) went directly to Apple. YouTube came in second, with $223 million in in-app revenues. And HBO NOW was third, with $166 million. Hulu and YouTube TV rounded out the top five.

As interesting, the top 10 video-on-demand apps accounted for almost 22 percent of all non-game app revenue in the U.S. last year. And their 62 percent revenue growth was higher than that of all other non-game apps combined, which grew 56 percent.

Tagged with

Share post

Please check our Community Guidelines before commenting

Conversation 6 comments

  • waethorn

    28 January, 2019 - 3:03 pm

    <p>Revenues. But where are the profits?</p>

  • jblank46

    28 January, 2019 - 5:51 pm

    <p>Meanwhile Comcast implements 1tb data caps two+ years ago on unlimited access accounts to get a cut of the inevitable pie. We haven’t gotten hit yet with any overages and we’ve been streaming only for years but it’s only a matter of time I bet.</p>

  • Jeff Jones

    29 January, 2019 - 1:59 am

    <p>Interesting that CBS is so high on the Google Play list while Hulu and Youtube don't show up at all.</p><p><br></p><p>Is that just because they don't have in-app payment methods on that platform?</p>

  • rrraa

    29 April, 2019 - 2:08 am

    <p>free online hearts game is the free for all public who want to play a logistic game ever with the jolly mood cause relax your <a href="https://heartsgameonline.net&quot; target="_blank">play hearts online</a> mind by the playing this game.</p><p><br></p>

  • Eric

    23 March, 2023 - 5:57 am

    How long is the battery life of the Pixel 6?

    • Floyd Underwood

      10 May, 2023 - 12:41 am

      I don’t know much about it

Windows Intelligence In Your Inbox

Sign up for our new free newsletter to get three time-saving tips each Friday

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Thurrott © 2024 Thurrott LLC