Paramount’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery would give the combined group reach into 57% of US internet households, according to new research from Parks Associates.
The research firm said the merger would place the enlarged company close to the scale of Netflix, Google, Amazon and Disney, each of which reaches close to 60% of US consumers through their streaming platforms and services.
Netflix remains the most widely used streaming ecosystem, reaching 64% of US internet households. Amazon and YouTube each reach 61%, while Disney’s combined portfolio, including Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+, reaches 58%.
Michael Goodman, director of entertainment research at Parks Associates, explained the streaming market is shifting away from reliance on single flagship services, with success increasingly dependent on broad ecosystems of complementary offers.
Parks said the proposed Paramount-WBD combination underlines the importance of scale, aggregation and portfolio strategy as media groups compete to reduce churn and keep viewers within their own ecosystems.
The firm added that bundling across SVOD, AVOD and live content, alongside improved discovery and AI-driven personalisation, will become increasingly important as competition intensifies.
Parks Associates expects further consolidation and deeper integration across streaming portfolios as the market continues to mature.
