Maybe “The Mandalorian” does it for you (love that headgear). Or perhaps you’re more of a “Killing Eve” type. No? We’ve got it: podcasts. We’d guess eventually. If we had to, that is.
Thing is, we don’t guess here at the PYMNTS Provider Ranking Research Lab, currently located inside a hollowed-out mountain that we sublet from the nice folks at S.H.I.E.L.D.
Besides, we would never employ conjecture when compiling PYMNTS’ Provider Ranking of Streaming Apps. People are touchy about their app performance — and their favorite shows.
Without commercial interruption, here’s the provider ranking.
The Top Five
When dealing with some of the mightiest corporations on earth, don’t go looking for scattershot change. Streaming services don’t like channel changing any more than broadcast television did, and we don’t see much. It seems that media subscribers are standing pat for now, possibly deciding whether newcomer Netflix or dependable Disney is kept or canceled.
To get rolling, we’ve got Google’s YouTube at No. 1 again, after just announcing a $100 million fund to advance short-form video (watch your back, TikTok).
No. 2 is Netflix, hitting 208 million subscribers in April amid signs of slowing growth in what’s been called “the correction quarter” for Netflix earnings. Also holding its ground with ease at No. 3 is Disney+, while the popular podcast app Spotify stays put at No. 4, having just announced a virtual event series including five prerecorded livestreams for $15 plus tax.
Finishing out this top five at No. 5 for another cycle is Amazon Prime Video, as its gargantuan parent company is about to close a reported $9 billion acquisition of legendary MGM Studios.
Anyone who thinks Amazon isn’t all-in on movies and television should rethink it. The question is, will this set off a bidding war for gilded Hollywood brands? That’s not without precedent.
The Top 10
Moving on, PlutoTV at No. 6 seems neither small nor distant, consistently scoring in the top 10.
The same can be said of a streaming pioneer, Hulu, holding steady at No. 7.
Amazon Music is in harmony with the rankings, sticking at No. 8 for another cycle. Not moving a muscle at No. 9 is the Twitch: Live Game Streaming app, which just lowered its subscription prices.
“Scooby-Doo” endings are the best, where the secret identity is unmasked (hint: the groundskeeper nearly always did it) and we say “I knew it” with a certain smugness.
In this case, it’s a tie at No. 10. First up is the Funimation anime overdubbing app (so fun). It is joined this month at No. 10 by none other than Apple Music, coming soon to a Tesla near you.
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