Live streaming is the ability to broadcast and disseminate video content in real-time. Live streaming is sometimes called Webcasting when it's used for broadcasting a particular event as it happens. Live streaming is also used as a marketing tool to promote an event or company. Live video can be streamed through either a desktop, mobile device or TV through various types of services such as YouTube, Facebook Live and Twitch. Viewers can interact with what's on the screen by commenting, liking and sharing clips on social media channels.
The number of live streaming platforms has increased dramatically in recent years with the arrival of services such as Periscope from Twitter, Facebook Live from Facebook and Snapchat from Snap Inc.,
Just like the TV shows, Millennials and young adults are watchers of live video. They find it entertaining and informative. From YouTube to Facebook Live to twitch, these are all examples of live video platforms.
The viewer's expectation for live streaming is high video quality, videos from brands, and video from a favorite team. A speaker, performer, or influencer can expect viewers to have higher expectations and will be more likely to produce better content. Brands are becoming more popular because of the exposure they get through live streaming.
Related: Why Social Media Is Important for Businesses in China
Infographic by Bahrain web Design
The live streaming market is booming, Different people have different preferences when it comes to watching the video. They watch live streamings on different devices. Twitch is a popular live streaming platform which has been in use for long time, but now many people at Twitch also use Microsoft Mixers. Youtube gaming is also gaining popularity among gamers as it provides new gameplay strategies and techniques of popular games. Mobile devices are also a very popular way of viewing live streamed video because they are portable, and it is easier to watch the video anywhere.
For a better understanding, here are some amazing live streaming stats you must know.
Live Video Streaming Trends & Statistics
- Traditional TV watching is declining but hasn’t gone away completely. 27% of Gen Zers and 34% of millennials watch linear TV daily. But it’s the older generations that are keeping linear TV popular — 38% of Gen Xers and 54% of baby boomers watch linear TV daily.
- Of the people who still watch traditional TV every day, a whopping 72% consider themselves sports fans. Perhaps the main reason people watch sports is to connect to traditional TV, not to “cut the cord”.
- Pay-TV subscribers in the United States. It gets smaller every year. Pay-TV companies lost 17. 3 million video subscribers of the company in the second quarter of 2023 with 17 million total subscribers. as 2 million in Q2 of 2022 according to the global automobile industry.
- Current weekly video consumption on the internet is increasing year by year. Global consumers will watch an average of 17 hours of live video a week by 2023.
- Online video viewing is growing every year; 92% of internet users watch digital video weekly, and 27% of internet users watch live streaming content weekly.
- Streaming video is also becoming part of our daily routine, with adults ages 18-34 in the U.S. of 20% watch streaming video multiple times a day
Live Streaming Apps:
- Video-first platforms like Twitch and YouTube are still the biggest destinations for live streaming content. Twitch averaged 2.64 million concurrent viewers watching content in Q3 2022.
- YouTube was the second-most-used social media platform in Q2 2023, with an average of 27 hours and 26 minutes per month per user (TikTok was first, with 33 hours and 38 minutes).
- One of the top content categories for live streaming is video games (although other genres have been steadily gaining speed since 2020). Twitch and YouTube Gaming — the two biggest streaming platforms dedicated to video game streams) had a combined total of 5.488 billion watched hours for gaming content in Q3 2023 alone.
- YouTube Live had more hours watched in Q2 2023 than Twitch, but Twitch’s gaming content far outstripped YouTube Live’s gaming content: 4.103 billion hours watched for Twitch games content and 1.385 billion hours watched for YouTube Live’s.
- The new video streaming platform Kick arrived on the scene in early 2023 and made a splash by racking up one million users in its first few months.
- Kick also had 167.8 million watched hours in Q2 2023 and surged to an impressive 296.84 watched hours in Q3 2023.
- When viewers aren’t tuning into video games and esports, they’re also heading to social media platforms to watch live videos. In the U.S., 37% of live stream viewers aged 18-34 used YouTube Live for streaming content. Facebook Live was more popular for people aged 35-54.
- Overall, live video does well on Facebook. People spend 3x more time watching a Facebook live video than one that’s no longer live.
- Live video gets more engagement than pre-recorded videos on LinkedIn too: 7x more reactions and 24x more comments than other videos.
- On mobile-first platforms like Instagram and TikTok, live streaming is more appealing to younger audiences. Instagram was the most popular platform used to watch live stream video content among 18-34 year-olds, with 43% of viewers saying it was their preferred platform. TikTok was the second most popular among this age group, with 41%.
- Live videos are gaining steam on social media, but still not the number-one reason people use social networks. Gen X, millennials, Gen X, and baby boomers all cite keeping up with friends and family as their top reason for using social media, at 46%, 49%, 55%, and 60% respectively.
- Watching live streams, such as events and shows, is lower on the list of reasons to use social media. Only 24% of Gen Z, 25% of millennials, 22% of Gen X, and 18% of baby boomers said they use social media for live streamed videos.
- Live streaming still isn’t the most popular type of content on social media, but the demand for it keeps growing. It’s the third most engaging type of video content according to users: 37% of social media users find live video content the most engaging type of in-feed content. Short-form videos are first at 66% and images are live streaming still isn’t the most popular type of content on social media, but the demand for it keeps growing. It’s the third most engaging type of video content according to users: 37% of social media users find live video content the most engaging type of in-feed content. Short-form videos are first at 66% and images are second at 61%.
Live-streaming video advertising is a new and cost-efficient way for businesses to interact with their customers, engage them into real-time conversations, and buy products after watching them. The number of marketers planning to use Facebook Live is increasing continuously. Facebook is ready and waiting to be the new home of live video streaming. With more than 1 billion monthly active users on the platform, now would be a perfect time for Facebook Live marketing to go mainstream.
| Overview | By 2027, it is anticipated that the live streaming market would be worth $184.3 billion. |
| In comparison to video on demand, live video garners 27% more watch time per viewing, or roughly 6 more minutes, at 24.41 minutes on average (slightly fewer than 18 minutes) | |
| The live video streaming market is anticipated to reach $149.34 billion by 2026. | |
| With 82.9 million live views, Coachella in 2019 has the most viewers of any live music event. | |
| 80% of consumers say they would rather watch a live video than read a blog. | |
| Audience | More than half of people between the ages of 18 and 49 either watch very little or no television. |
| Millennials are the greatest segment of live content viewers, with 63% of them routinely watching live streaming video. | |
| In the US, the majority of young adults who watch TV do it via online streaming. | |
| Ages 18 to 34 make up 55% of Twitch users. | |
| Around 40% of computer and mobile viewers are 13–34 years old | |
| 47% of live streaming video viewers worldwide are watching more live videos than a year ago | |
| Viewers Expectation | When watching a live stream, 67% of viewers feel that the most critical part is the quality of the video. |
| OTT platforms at risk of losing roughly 25% of their revenue by using content of lower quality | |
| When watching a live stream, 67% of viewers feel that the most critical part is the quality of the video. | |
| OTT platforms at risk of losing roughly 25% of their revenue by using content of lower quality | |
| Buffering is down 41%, video start failures are down 33% year over year, and picture quality is up 25%. | |
| 85% of viewers prefer more brand videos. | |
| 67% of viewers of live streams bought tickets to the same event the following time it was held. | |
| How Viewers Watch | In the US in 2020, 232 million individuals used all types of devices to watch streaming or downloaded video. |
| The average daily time spent watching videos on mobile devices is 16 minutes. | |
| The majority of Millennials (56%) use smartphone for watching live video, while 44% say they prefer a tablet. | |
| Mixer, a streaming service from Microsoft, saw a 149% increase. | |
| Twitch features more than 500,000 active daily streamers, 3 million content creators, and more than 15 million unique daily visitors. | |
| 52% of live stream watchers prefer to watch ad-supported content to subscription-based content. | |
| Content Types | The most popular Twitch streaming category are games. |
| In the US, 86% of live streaming are from sporting events. | |
| Tfue, who outperformed Ninja and Shroud in terms of popularity, had more than 87 million hours of live streaming viewers in 2019. | |
| 51% of live video material streamed on mobile devices is user-generated content. | |
| Video Streaming for Business | For business presentations, live video is used by 55% of companies. |
| 65% of companies claim to have live streamed to several locations. | |
| For live, exclusive, or on-demand video from their preferred presenter, 45% of audiences are willing to pay. | |
| 54% of consumers would like to see more video content made by the brands they support | |
| 29% of businesses stream or broadcast live video every day, with 53% doing so at least once a week. | |
| Live Video Streaming for Marketing | When Millennials shop online, over 75% agree that watching videos helps them compare products. |
| 35% of marketers use live video, up 20% year over year. | |
| 32% of marketers intend to include Facebook Live into their approach to video marketing. | |
| Eighty percent of people prefer watching live videos from brands than reading their blogs. | |
| 82% of viewers feel live streams are preferable to a brand's social media updates. | |
| For long-form videos, ad views have increased by 27%, while for short-form videos, they have increased by 20%. |
Related : Mobile Apps Usage – Statistics And Trends , Startups Success And Failure Rate - Statistics And Trends
User Focused Live Streaming Statistics
The current growth of video streaming industry is jaw dropping. As per the live streaming stats of 2024, the current market valuation is about $670 billion. In 2023, this market was projected to surpass $2.49 trillion by growing at a compound rate annual growth rate of 17.8%.
Streaming Platforms with Most Users
Among the largest streaming platforms, Netflix stands at first with over 260 million subscribers. The second one is Disney+ which has 157 million subscribers as of May 2023. Amazon Prime Video is third with over 165 million subscribers as of 2024.
Subscription Trends and Usage
Here’s a look at the growth in video streaming subscriptions and TV usage:
Proportion of US Households with Streaming Subscriptions
| Year | Proportion of Subscriptions (by Household) |
| 2015 | 52% |
| 2017 | 64% |
| 2018 | 69% |
| 2019 | 74% |
| 2020 | 78% |
| 2021 | 78% |
| 2022 | 83% |
| 2023 | 83% |
Digital Media Usage by Month and Year
As per the live streaming statistics, With the rise of digital media usage, the consumption of streaming platforms has increased drastically.
Here is a overview of digital media usage over years which has the strong impact on live streaming stats:
| Month, Year | Streaming | Cable | Broadcast | Other |
| Dec, 2021 | 27.7% | 37.3% | 26.1% | 8.9% |
| Jan 2022 | 28.9% | 35.6% | 26.4% | 9.1% |
| Feb 2022 | 28.7% | 35.4% | 26% | 10% |
| Mar 2022 | 29.7% | 36.9% | 24.9% | 8.4% |
| Apr 2022 | 30.4% | 36.8% | 24.7% | 8.2% |
| May 2022 | 31.9% | 36.5% | 24.4% | 7.2% |
| Jun 2022 | 33.7% | 35.1% | 22.4% | 8.8% |
| Jul 2022 | 34.8% | 34.4% | 21.6% | 9.2% |
| Aug 2022 | 35% | 34.5% | 22.1% | 8.5% |
| Sep 2022 | 36.9% | 33.8% | 24.2% | 5.1% |
| Oct 2022 | 37.3% | 32.9% | 26% | 3.8% |
| Nov 2022 | 38.2% | 31.8% | 25.7% | 4.3% |
| Dec 2022 | 38.1% | 30.9% | 24.7% | 6.3% |
| Jan 2023 | 32.8% | 30.4% | 24.9% | 11.9% |
| Feb 2023 | 34.3% | 30.2% | 23.8% | 11.7% |
| Mar 2023 | 34.1% | 31.1% | 23.3% | 11.6% |
| Apr 2023 | 34% | 31.5% | 23.1% | 11.5% |
| May 2023 | 36.4% | 31.1% | 22.8% | 9.7% |
| Jun 2023 | 37.7% | 30.6% | 20.8% | 10.9% |
| Jul 2023 | 38.7% | 29.6% | 20% | 11.6% |
| Aug 2023 | 38.3% | 30.2% | 20.4% | 11.1% |
| Sep 2023 | 37.5% | 29.8% | 23% | 9.6% |
| Oct 2023 | 36.6% | 29.5% | 24.6% | 9.3% |
| Nov 2023 | 36.1% | 28.3% | 24.9% | 10.7% |
| Dec 2023 | 35.9% | 28.2% | 23.5% | 12.5% |
| Jan 2024 | 36% | 27.9% | 24.2% | 11.8% |
Sources: Nielsen, Leichtman Research Group, Statista, Forbes, EarthWeb
User Preferences and Viewing Habits
As per the survey, here is what most of the users looks into streaming platforms before purchasing its subscription:
| Video Streaming Attributes | Proportion Who Think it is Important |
| Cost | 84% |
| Ease of use | 81% |
| Variety/availability of content | 79% |
| Streaming/playback quality | 77% |
| Speed (menu selection, loading content) | 74% |
| Accessibility/search of desired content | 71% |
| Availability across devices | 58% |
| Resolution available (4k Ultra HD, HD) | 56% |
| Skipping ads features | 52% |
| Ad-free | 48% |
| Content available for downloading/offline | 40% |
| Menu recommendations | 38% |
| Content available live | 37% |
Regarding advertising preferences:
Here is what features of streaming platforms attracts the users most:
| Feature | Percentage of users |
| Shorter ad break | 43% |
| Ability to earn rewards | 42% |
| Shorter ad length | 41% |
| Single ad in a break | 41% |
| Target ads | 34% |
| Short ads from sponsor | 33% |
| Categories you choose | 33% |
| Time countdown | 31% |
Generational Differences in Video Streaming
Below is the overview of the generation of the users and how they interact with the streaming platforms.
| Generation | Canceled SVOD in Last 6 Months | Canceled Then Renewed in Last 6 Months |
| Gen Z | 57% | 38% |
| Millennials | 62% | 43% |
| Gen X | 43% | 20% |
| Boomers and older | 24% | 7% |
| Average | 44% | 24% |
Notable, Millennial user bases mostly make changes in their subsicriptions. On the other hand, boomers don’t take much interest in making any changes.
Binge-Watching Trends Among Generations
Here is the habit of users under various age brackets and their acitivity among streaming platforms.
| Age Bracket | Binge-watchers | Non-binge watchers |
| 13-17 years | 60% | 40% |
| 18-29 years | 69% | 31% |
| 30-44 years | 70% | 30% |
| 45-64 years | 62% | 38% |
| 65+ | 41% | 59% |
Generational Differences in Video Streaming Subscription Changes
When it comes to altering their video streaming subscriptions, generational preferences vary significantly.
Notably, Boomers and older generations are the least likely to make changes compared to younger age groups.
Breakdown of Subscription Changes by Generation
The following table shows how different generations have adjusted their video streaming subscriptions in the past 6 months:
| Change Made | Gen Z | Millennials | Gen X | Boomers and Older | Average |
| Cancelled a paid subscription to save money | 30% | 32% | 30% | 15% | 26% |
| Switched from paid to free ad-supported service | 21% | 31% | 19% | 8% | 19% |
| Signed up for a bundle to lower costs | 17% | 18% | 14% | 4% | 13% |
| Added a new paid subscription to replace costly activities | 13% | 15% | 14% | 6% | 12% |
| Switched from ad-free to ad-supported subscription | 16% | 18% | 10% | 4% | 11% |
| Made at least one change | 54% | 66% | 51% | 25% | 47% |
So, all of these live streaming stats clearly shows that young users love to make a lot of changes in their video streaming subscriptions. On the other hand, older ones are mostly happy with their current choices they have made.
