David Farnor | On 24, Dec 2019

YouTube has overtaken BBC iPlayer for the first time, according to new research from Ampere Analysis.

The media analytics firm’s report for Q3 2019 continued to see YouTube dominate as the most watched video service in the world (except for China, where iQiYi leads the pack). In the UK, though, YouTube overtook BBC iPlayer for the first time since Q1 2016, attracting more viewers than the Beeb’s catch-up platform. 57 per cent of Internet users watched a YouTube video in the past month, compared to BBC iPlayer’s 55 per cent.

Netflix is the second most watched service worldwide, with Facebook the third. The report also highlights the growing appetite for online video globally, with 70 per cent of online users in the USA and Europe watching a video on social media in the past month, up 4 percentage points since Q3 2018. 55 per cent, on the other hand, have watched a video on a subscription VOD platform, up 8 percentage points in the past year.

The research also gives an insight into the importance of international markets to Netflix’s future growth, with the US having the second highest penetration of subscriptions (68 per cent), but the fourth lowest in terms of proportion of subscribers who used the service in the past month. South Africa, on the other hand, is leading the way with engaged Netflix users, with 83 per cent of subscribers watching the service in the past month, while Turkey has seen the highest increase in viewership, with 77 per cent of Netflix subscribers watching the service in Q3 2019, up from 63 per cent in Q1 2019.

Minal Modha, Consumer Research Lead at Ampere Analysis, said in a statement: “The strength of short-form video is evident in YouTube’s dominant position as the most viewed in each market surveyed outside of China. Looking at the top 5, three of them are social video platforms which highlights its importance in the viewing mix for consumers”.

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