The 2023 Swiss video streaming study by moneyland.ch, which is based on a representative survey, confirms that video streaming is now mainstream in Switzerland. 92 percent of the 1538 participants in this year’s survey say that they use at least one streaming service. Although use has already been high in previous years, the number of participants who use video streaming platforms is higher in 2023. Last year, 89 percent of participants used these services.
Youtube retains its throne
As in previous years, Youtube is the most popular video streaming platform in Switzerland, by a wide margin. A high 80 percent of residents watch videos on Youtube, up slightly from 79 percent last year. But most viewers only use the free services from the Google subsidiary. Still, 9 percent use paid Youtube Premium subscriptions – more than twice as many as last year (4 percent).
Netflix remains the most popular paid subscription
Like last year, 58 percent of participants say they use Netflix. That means Netflix is used by nearly twice as many Swiss consumers as Disney Plus (30 percent). Amazon Prime Video takes third place among paid subscriptions, at 23 percent.
An interesting revelation is that Netflix, the market leader, has not been able to grow its customer base. That sets it apart from its competitors. Both Disney Plus and Amazon Prime Video both saw user numbers grow by around 8 percentage points compared to a year ago.
“That nearly six out of every ten Swiss consumers uses Netflix is certainly a major success. But attracting new customers will now be more difficult,” says moneyland.ch telecom expert Ralf Beyeler.
57 percent of participants use streaming services from TV broadcasters
TV broadcasters have offered certain shows online for many years now. But competition from streaming services has driven television broadcasters to expand their streaming offers. Swiss public broadcaster SRG now clearly advertises Play Suisse and CH Media Oneplus as streaming services. Streaming platforms for Swiss consumers are also being offered by German media groups Prosiebensat.1 Media (Zappn) and RTL (RTL Plus). The 2023 Swiss video streaming survey is the first moneyland.ch study to include streaming offers from these TV broadcasters.
The results show that in total, 57 percent of participants use at least one of the streaming platforms from TV broadcasters which were included in the survey. Play SRF/RTS from the SRG is the most popular, with 37 percent using this service. It is followed by Play Suisse from the SRG (25 percent), RTL Plus (23 percent), and Zappn (12 percent). 38 percent of participants also use other media libraries from TV broadcasters which were not individually named in the survey.
The survey shows that many Swiss consumers use the offers from TV broadcasters. The broadcasters have adapted to competition by video streaming platforms. Viewers are keen on watching shows online,” says Beyeler.
Nearly one-third of Swiss consumers use Tiktok
Chinese social media platform Tiktok has grown its audience since last year. Now, 30 percent of participants say that they use Tiktok, compared to 22 percent last year.
Table 1: Video streaming use by platform
| Streaming service |
2023 |
2022 |
2021 |
2020 |
| Youtube |
80% |
79% |
75% |
65% |
| Netflix |
58% |
58% |
54% |
45% |
| Play SRF / Play RTS |
37% |
* |
* |
* |
| Tiktok |
30% |
22% |
13% |
* |
| Disney Plus |
30% |
22% |
13% |
* |
| Play Suisse |
25% |
* |
* |
* |
| Amazon Prime Video |
23% |
15% |
10% |
7% |
| RTL Plus |
23% |
* |
* |
* |
| Twitch |
19% |
15% |
* |
* |
| Apple TV Plus |
19% |
11% |
12% |
* |
| Swisscom Blue Max |
19% |
11% |
9% |
* |
| Swisscom Blue Sport |
19% |
11% |
9% |
* |
| Sky Sports |
17% |
10% |
6% |
4% |
| Sky Show |
16% |
8% |
4% |
3% |
| Google Play |
15% |
8% |
6% |
12% |
| Oneplus |
15% |
* |
* |
* |
| Dazn |
14% |
6% |
4% |
4% |
| Paramount Plus |
14% |
* |
* |
* |
| Netzkino |
13% |
6% |
4% |
3% |
| Zappn |
12% |
* |
* |
* |
| Other streaming services |
23% |
15% |
20% |
* |
| Other media libraries |
38% |
* |
* |
* |
* This streaming service was not included in the video streaming survey for the given year.
Fewer paying customers at Netflix
Because survey participants also stated whether or not they pay for a streaming service, it is possible to estimate the numbers of paying Swiss customers between the ages of 18 and 74 across each streaming service. The figures shown are moneyland.ch estimates. The service providers themselves do not publish any figures for Switzerland.
In 2023, Netflix remains the most paid-for streaming service, by a wide margin, although it has lost 2 percentage points compared to last year. According to moneyland.ch estimates, Swiss consumers currently have around 2.4 million Netflix subscriptions – around 100,000 less than a year ago. The estimate for Disney Plus is around 950,000 subscriptions.
Table 2: Paying customers
| Streaming service |
Paying customers |
Percentage of residents |
| Netflix |
2'400'000 |
38% |
| Disney Plus |
950'000 |
15% |
| Amazon Prime Video |
750'000 |
12% |
| Swisscom Blue Sport |
550'000 |
9% |
| Youtube |
550'000 |
9% |
| Sky Sports |
500'000 |
8% |
| Apple TV Plus |
450'000 |
7% |
| Swisscom Blue Max |
450'000 |
7% |
| Tiktok |
375'000 |
6% |
| RTL Plus |
350’000 |
6% |
| Sky Show |
350'000 |
5% |
| Dazn |
250'000 |
4% |
| Google Play |
250'000 |
4% |
| Paramount Plus |
225’000 |
4% |
| Oneplus |
225’000 |
4% |
| Twitch |
215'000 |
3% |
| Netzkino |
200’000 |
3% |
| Others |
375'000 |
6% |
Streaming is more popular among young adults
Youtube and Netflix are both more popular among young adults between 18 and 25 than among residents as a whole. 93 percent use Youtube and 86 percent use Netflix. Tiktok is used by 56 percent of young adults, which is also higher than the average across the entire population.
It is not surprising that use is normally higher among young participants than the general population. But there are some video streaming platforms that are less popular with young people than with residents as a whole. Play Suisse from the SRG is used by just 15 percent of young adults. That is 10 percentage points less than the average use of that platform across all residents.
Use of streaming platforms is higher among residents aged 26 to 49 than in any other age group. The most popular platforms in this demographic are YouTube (used by 88 percent) and Netflix (68 percent). Other video streaming services such as Disney Plus (44 percent), Amazon Prime Video (36 percent), Play Suisse (32 percent) and Apple TV Plus (29 percent) are also widely used. Surprisingly, 39 percent of participants in this age group use Tiktok.
Adults between 50 and 74 years old are generally less likely to use video streaming than younger residents. The top streaming platforms in this age group are Youtube (67 percent), Netflix (35 percent), and Play SRF/RTS (31 percent).
Table 3: The ten most popular video streaming platforms by age group
| 18 to 25 years old |
26 to 49 years old |
50 to 74 years old |
|
1. Youtube
93%
|
1. Youtube
88%
|
1. Youtube
67%
|
|
2. Netflix
86%
|
2. Netflix
68%
|
2. Netflix
35%
|
|
3. TikTok
56%
|
3. Disney Plus
44%
|
3. Play SRF / Play RTS
31%
|
|
4. Disney Plus
43%
|
4. Play SRF / Play RTS
42%
|
4. Play Suisse
20%
|
|
5. Play SRF / Play RTS
36%
|
5. TikTok
39%
|
5. RTL Plus
14%
|
|
6. Twitch
35%
|
6. Amazon Prime Video
36%
|
6. TikTok
11%
|
|
7. Amazon Prime Video
25%
|
7. Play Suisse
32%
|
7. Disney Plus
9%
|
|
8. Apple TV Plus
25%
|
8. RTL Plus
30%
|
8. Swisscom Blue Sport
8%
|
|
9. RTL Plus
22%
|
9. Apple TV Plus
29%
|
9. Swisscom Blue Max
8%
|
|
10. Sky Sports
22%
|
10. Swisscom Blue Max
29%
|
10. Amazon Prime Video
7%
|
No major differences between linguistic regions
For many video streaming platforms, there is very little difference in popularity between French-speaking and German-speaking Switzerland. But there are a few exceptions. For example, 43 percent of adults in French-speaking Switzerland use Play RTS, while just 34 percent of adults in German-speaking Switzerland use Play SRF. Other platforms which are more popular in the Romandie include Tiktok (36 percent versus 28 percent in German-speaking regions), Amazon Prime Video (28 percent vs. 21 percent), and Play Suisse (28 percent vs. 24 percent).
Few consumers have multiple paid subscriptions
Many streaming service providers aim to attract and retain customers by offering exclusive content. But that strategy does not impress many consumers, who are often forced to take out multiple subscriptions in order to watch their favorite series and movies. But the following evaluation shows that the approach taken by service providers does not go over well with Swiss consumers. For its evaluation, moneyland.ch analyzed how many customers pay for subscriptions from each of the video streaming platforms Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV Plus, Disney Plus, Netflix, Paramount Plus and Sky Show. 28 percent of participants pay for a subscription from just one platform. 10 percent have two paid subscriptions, 5 percent have three paid subscriptions, and 2 percent pay for four different streaming subscriptions. Less than 1 percent of participants pay for five or six video streaming services.
Sports streaming is niche
Three sports streaming services – Blue Sport from Swisscom, Dazn, and Sky Sport – all cater to Swiss sports fans. In total, a quarter of survey participants use a sports streaming service. Blue Sport from Swisscom is the most popular, with 19 percent of residents using this service. It is followed by Sky Sport (17 percent), and Dazn (14 percent).
But only a few residents are willing to pay for multiple sports subscriptions. Just 15 percent of participants have one sports streaming subscription. 4 percent have two paid subscriptions, and just 1 percent pay for all three streaming services.
Methodology
The 2023 Swiss video streaming study is based on a representative online survey which was carried out by market research institute Ipsos as commissioned by moneyland.ch. The survey took place in March 2023, and included residents of French-speaking and German-speaking Switzerland between the ages of 18 and 74 years old. Survey participants selected whether or not they use a streaming service, and if so, whether or not they pay for the service, log in with another person’s account, or use the free version. Survey participants also had the option of abstaining. Figures for previous years are taken from the 2020, 2021, and 2022 Swiss video streaming studies published by moneyland.ch in April 2020, March 2021, and May 2022.
More on this topic:
Compare Swiss video streaming subscriptions now
Netflix in Switzerland: Questions and answers
Amazon Prime Video in Switzerland: Questions and answers
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