Download "Audiovisual Media Services in Europe - 2024 edition"

Key findings:

• The European audiovisual sector features a total of 12 703 audiovisual media services and video-sharing platforms (as of Dec. 2023) available in wider Europe (defined as EU27, Albania, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Montenegro, North Macedonia, the Republic of Moldova, Norway, Serbia, Switzerland, Türkiye, the United Kingdom and Ukraine). Around three quarters of these services are linear services (9 434 TV channels) and one quarter are non-linear services (3 269 VOD services and video-sharing platforms).
• Around one in four (23%) of all private TV channels (excluding local TV) are US-owned and the same applies to one in ten (8%) of all on-demand services and video-sharing platforms in Europe. For multi-country VOD services, several catalogues are counted as one service. US TV channel portfolios are significantly larger than European ones, with 71% of channels in the top 10 TV groups owned by five US companies.
• US players all operate fully on the pan-European level, serving numerous European markets. The brands of Warner Bros. Discovery are virtually omnipresent with 46 European markets covered.
• 11 TV and VOD groups are present in at least 30 different European markets - 9 of them are US-based.

To map the ever-changing European audiovisual sector the European Audiovisual Observatory, part of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, has published a new edition of its annual report on TV channels, on-demand services and video-sharing platforms in Europe. This report – Audiovisual Media Services in Europe – was authored by Dr. Agnes Schneeberger, Analyst within the Observatory’s Department for Market Information. 

One in four audiovisual media services in Europe is an on-demand service

The diversity of European audiovisual media is reflected in a sector offering a total of 12 703 audiovisual media services and video-sharing platforms which are available in wider Europe (Dec. 2023). Around three quarters of these are linear services (9 434 TV channels) and one quarter are non-linear services (3 269 VOD services and video-sharing platforms - VSPs).

Local audiences carry significant weight too – 42% of TV channels in Europe are regional and local TV services.

The content of AV services in Europe reveals significant differences between linear and non-linear services. While TV programming is largely defined by thematic fragmentation, on-demand services and VSPs still have a clear focus on entertainment, film and TV fiction content.

With regards to ownership, the European TV market is divided into a public sector with mainly generalist programming available on DTT networks and a private sector which has expanded into thematic cable, IPTV, and satellite channels. Almost all on-demand services and VSPs are privately owned (97%). Public service media have entered the market as well, gradually expanding their catch-up services into full-fledged VOD services.

Dominant presence of US players in the European TV and VOD sector

Overall, US groups have a substantial influence on the European audiovisual sector, with significant portfolios and market presence compared to their European counterparts. Around one in four (23%) of all private TV channels (excluding local TV) are US-owned and one in ten (8%) of all on-demand services and VSPs in Europe belong to a US company. US TV channel portfolios are significantly larger than European ones, with 71% of channels in the top 10 TV groups owned by five US companies. 

US players all operate fully on the pan-European level, serving numerous European markets. Warner Bros. Discovery brands such as Animal Planet, Cartoon Network, Discovery, Eurosport and HBO MAX are virtually omnipresent with 46 European markets covered. Walt Disney, Amazon, Netflix, Comcast and Paramount all operate in 40 or more European markets. Overall, European players have fewer market presences compared to Chinese, Japanese and US players.

The top pan-European players are either multi-brand players, like Comcast, active in both TV and VOD markets or single brand players, like Netflix, with a focus on on-demand markets. When branching out, top players build their on-demand presence in markets where they already have a TV presence. Overall, most broadcasters in the top 20 ranking launched VOD services.

With regards to their establishment hubs, pan-European players employ different strategies. Netflix, for example, uses a centralised strategy with one main country of establishment from where it targets the European markets. A multi-country strategy is used by French Vivendi, where typically a small number of countries serve as a basis to target various national markets with its brands Canal+ and Filmbox+. Warner Bros. Discovery, by contrast, applies a decentralized strategy where a larger number of establishment hubs serve the European markets to disseminate the Discovery, Eurosport and HBO MAX brands. 

The most significant establishment for single-brand streamers is Ireland. The country is used as an exclusive establishment hub by Chinese Huawei and US players Apple, Alphabet and Microsoft.