Netflix is the largest streaming video subscription service in the world. Created by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in 1997, the company has revolutionized the video content subscriptionmodel with over 139 million subscribers in 190 countries. The success of Netflix is due to two factors. The first is a recommendation system that gives suggestions on what customers should watch based on their viewing history. The second is the vast catalog of content on offer – produced by third parties and by Netflix itself. These factors have resulted in Netflix competing against influential TV networks and film producers for viewership.
A video streaming service offered as part of Amazon Prime membership. Amazon Prime Video competes directly with Netflix in the streaming entertainment space.
Amazon Prime Video provides a vast library of movies and TV shows, directly competing with Netflix in segments like on-demand streaming and original content, targeting subscribers looking for a wide range of content.
Both compete in the on-demand streaming and original content market, offering access to a diverse catalog of movies and series, with Amazon Prime Video’s focus on bundling with Amazon Prime membership.
Amazon Prime Video’s integration with Amazon Prime’s other benefits.
Disney+
A streaming service from The Walt Disney Company offering Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, and National Geographic content. Disney+ competes with Netflix in the streaming entertainment sector.
Disney+ features a collection of popular franchises and exclusive content, directly competing with Netflix in segments like family entertainment and original series, targeting families and fans of Disney content.
Both compete in the family entertainment and original content market, offering beloved franchises and exclusive series, with Disney+’s focus on Disney’s extensive content library.
Disney+’s extensive library of iconic franchises and family-friendly content.
Hulu
A subscription-based streaming service known for offering a mix of current TV shows, movies, and original content. Hulu competes with Netflix in the streaming and original programming space.
Hulu provides access to current TV episodes, movies, and original series, directly competing with Netflix in segments like original programming and TV show streaming, targeting viewers looking for up-to-date content.
Both compete in the original programming and TV show streaming market, offering a variety of content, with Hulu’s focus on providing current episodes shortly after they air.
Hulu’s offering of current TV episodes shortly after broadcast.
Apple TV+
A subscription-based streaming service from Apple offering original TV shows, movies, and documentaries. Apple TV+ competes with Netflix in the streaming entertainment and original content sector.
Apple TV+ features exclusive original content, directly competing with Netflix in segments like original series and movies, targeting users interested in high-quality, exclusive productions.
Both compete in the original series and movie market, offering exclusive content, with Apple TV+’s focus on its integration with the Apple ecosystem and high-quality original programming.
Apple TV+’s integration with the Apple ecosystem and high-quality original content.
HBO Max
A streaming service from WarnerMedia offering HBO content, Max Originals, and a wide range of movies and TV shows. HBO Max competes with Netflix in the premium streaming and original programming space.
HBO Max provides access to HBO’s library, Max Originals, and additional content, directly competing with Netflix in segments like premium streaming and original series, targeting subscribers seeking premium entertainment.
Both compete in the premium streaming and original content market, offering premium series and movies, with HBO Max’s focus on combining HBO’s renowned content with Max Originals.
HBO Max’s combination of HBO’s acclaimed content and Max Originals.
Peacock (NBCUniversal)
A streaming service from NBCUniversal offering a mix of movies, TV shows, news, and sports content. Peacock competes with Netflix in the streaming entertainment and live TV space.
Peacock features a diverse library of content, including live TV, directly competing with Netflix in segments like on-demand streaming and live sports, targeting viewers looking for a wide range of entertainment options.
Both compete in the on-demand streaming and live TV market, offering varied content and live sports, with Peacock’s focus on combining on-demand and live streaming.
Peacock’s blend of on-demand streaming and live TV offerings.
Paramount+
A streaming service from ViacomCBS offering content from brands like CBS, Paramount Pictures, and more. Paramount+ competes with Netflix in the streaming entertainment and on-demand content space.
Paramount+ features a collection of content from various ViacomCBS properties, directly competing with Netflix in segments like on-demand streaming and original programming, targeting fans of CBS and ViacomCBS brands.
Both compete in the on-demand streaming and original content market, offering a mix of series and movies, with Paramount+’s focus on leveraging the ViacomCBS content portfolio.
Paramount+’s access to content from ViacomCBS brands.
YouTube Premium
A subscription service from YouTube that offers an ad-free experience, YouTube Originals, and access to YouTube Music. YouTube Premium competes with Netflix in the original programming and ad-free streaming space.
YouTube Premium provides an ad-free experience, original content, and access to YouTube Music, directly competing with Netflix in segments like original programming and ad-free streaming, targeting users who frequent YouTube.
Both compete in the original programming and ad-free streaming market, offering ad-free viewing and original series, with YouTube Premium’s focus on integrating with the YouTube platform and YouTube Music.
YouTube Premium’s integration with the broader YouTube ecosystem.
CBS All Access (Now Paramount+)
A streaming service from ViacomCBS offering CBS content and exclusive originals. CBS All Access (now part of Paramount+) competes with Netflix in the streaming entertainment and CBS content space.
CBS All Access provides CBS programming and exclusive originals, directly competing with Netflix in segments like CBS content streaming and exclusive series, targeting fans of CBS shows and original productions.
Both compete in the CBS content streaming and exclusive series market, offering CBS programming and originals, with CBS All Access’ focus on CBS’s extensive content library.
CBS All Access’ access to CBS programming and exclusive originals.
Vudu (Walmart)
A digital video rental and purchase service that offers a marketplace for buying and renting movies and TV shows. Vudu (owned by Walmart) competes indirectly with Netflix by providing a different business model for accessing content.
Vudu allows users to buy or rent movies and TV shows, offering a different content acquisition model compared to subscription-based services like Netflix, targeting viewers who prefer to purchase or rent specific titles.
Both indirectly compete in the digital content acquisition market, but with different models, as Vudu focuses on a transactional model for content access.
Vudu’s focus on a pay-per-content transactional model.
Amazon Prime Video
Prime Video launched in 2006 and has already earned 150 million subscribers in 200 territories globally.
The platform is available to exist Amazon Prime users, giving them access to thousands of movies, shows, music, and documentaries.
Like Netflix, Amazon has recently begun producing its own content under the Prime Originals banner.
In emerging economies with poor connectivity, users can download videos to watch offline.
At present, a yearly Amazon Prime Video subscription can be had for $119 per year – or $9.92 a month.
This is significantly cheaper than two of Netflix’s three pricing tiers.
Disney Plus
It would be hard to argue the case for a more recognizable entertainment brand than Disney. Disney is of course synonymous with Walt Disney, but it was Walt and his brother Roy who started the company in 1923 in Burbank, California. Disney content is now broadcast on over 100 channels in 34 different languages across the globe.
Disney Plus offers a wide range of content, including the Star Wars and Marvel franchises, animated masterpieces, and documentaries.
After acquiring Fox in 2019, Disney further expanded their catalog to include classics such as The Simpsons.
Given the longevity of parent company Disney, the streaming service also features content stretching back 70 years.
This gives Disney Plus a certain nostalgia for many viewers that Netflix will find impossible to replicate.
At $6.99/month or $69.99 for a year, Disney Plus is more cost-effective than even the cheapest Netflix plan.
HBO on Demand
HBO has been creating premium content for over 40 years.
However, the company is a relative newcomer to streaming with 50 million subscribers in the USA and a presence in Latin America and Europe.
HBO on Demand is home to some of the most popular shows in recent history.
This includes Doctor Who, Friends, and Game of Thrones.
In 2015, the company launched HBO Now as a direct-to-consumer service with no requirement to subscribe to a cable or satellite system.
HBO Max was launched in 2020, incorporating content from Turner, Warner, and Warner Bros. Pictures.
Hulu
Hulu is a unique Netflix competitor in the sense that it gives consumers access to content right after it has aired on major networks.
In fact, Hulu’s view on demand (VoD) catalog features over 85,000 series episodes.
Hulu has also secured access to the majority of FX channel original content, giving it a slight edge over Netflix.
It also has produced popular original content such as The Handmaid’s Tale.
The company has managed to secure close to 40 million users in the United States alone, second only to Netflix.
This has been achieved through a proactive strategy of discount promotions and the packaging of streaming content with live television.
Key takeaways:
Netflix has revolutionized the video subscriptionmodel and enjoys significant market share as a result. The company has a vast catalog of content which puts it in direct competition with TV networks and producers.
Amazon Prime Video is perhaps the most significant Netflix competitor because the platform has the resources necessary to emulate the Netflix model.
With a back catalog spanning more than 70 years and several major rights acquisitions, Disney+ also enjoys a significant market share.
Key Highlights
Netflix:
Largest streaming video subscription service globally.
Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph.
Over 139 million subscribers in 190 countries.
Key success factors: Recommendation system and vast content catalog.
Competes with TV networks and film producers for viewership.
Amazon Prime Video:
Launched in 2006.
150 million subscribers in 200 territories.
Access for Amazon Prime users to movies, shows, music, and documentaries.
Producing original content under the Prime Originals banner.
Offline viewing option in regions with poor connectivity.
Subscription costs $9.92 per month or $119 per year.
Disney Plus:
Offers content from Disney, Star Wars, Marvel, and more.
Acquired Fox in 2019, expanding its catalog.
Features content spanning over 70 years.
Subscription costs $6.99 per month or $69.99 per year.
Netflix is a subscription-based business model making money with three simple plans: basic, standard, and premium, giving access to stream series, movies, and shows. Leveraging on a streaming platform, Netflix generated over $33.7 billion in 2023, with an operating income of over $6.95 billion and a net income of over $5.4 billion. Starting in 2013, Netflix started to develop its content under the Netflix Originals brand, which today represents the most important strategic asset for the company that, in 2023, counted over 260 million paying members worldwide.
Binge-watching is the practice of watching TV series all at once. In a speech at the Edinburgh Television Festival in 2013, Kevin Spacey said: “If they want to binge then we should let them binge.” This new content format would be popularized by Netflix, launching its TV series all at once.
Coopetition describes a recently modern phenomenon where organizations both compete and cooperate, which is also known as cooperative competition. A recent example is how the Netflix streaming platform has been among the major customers of Amazon AWS cloud infrastructure, while Amazon Prime has been among the competitors of the Netflix Prime content platform.
Netflix is among the most popular streaming platforms, with a subscription-based businessmodel. The brand, platform, and content are strengths. The volatility of content licensing and production are weaknesses. The streaming market is a potential blue ocean. The inability to attract and retain premium members and its fixed long-term costs threaten its businessmodel.
Netflix’s largest individual shareholder is Reed Hastings, co-founder, and former CEO of the company, now Chairperson of Netflix, with a 1.76% stake, valued at over $4.5 billion as of January 2024. Other significant individual shareholders comprise Jay C. Hoag, the company’s directors since 1999, and Ted Sarandos, former chief content officer and now Chief Executive Officer of Netflix. Major institutional shareholders comprise The Vanguard Group (7.99% ownership), BlackRock (6.24% ownership), and FMR (5.35% ownership).
In 2023 Netflix had over 260 million paid subscribers. In 2022, Netflix had 230 million paid subscribers and almost 222 million paid subscribers in 2021.
Netflix reported an average yearly revenue per subscriber of $139.68 in 2023, compared to $141.12 in 2022. Thus, Netflix had an average revenue per subscriber of $120 in 2019 (pre-COVID) and $139.68 by 2023.
In 2023, Netflix reported an average monthly revenue per subscriber of $16.28 in the US & Canada, $10.87 in EMEA, $7.64 in APAC, and $8.66 in the LATAM region. Thus, the US & Canada reported the highest average monthly revenue per subscriber of $16.28.
Netflix had over 260 million subscribers in 2023, with over $33.7 billion in revenue, of which $14.87 billion came from the USA & Canada; $10.55 billion from EMEA, $4.44 billion from LATAM, and $3.76 billion from APAC.
In 2022, The Walt Disney Company’s total paid subscriber base was larger than Netlfix, with over 235 million paid members, compared with Netflix’s over 230 million members. However, Disney’s offering is fragmented among Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu, compared with Netflix, which has a single offering.
Zoominfo is an American software-as-a-service (SaaS) company founded by Henry Schuck and Kirk Brown in 2007. The company sells access to the most comprehensive B2B database in the world to help sales and marketing teams better communicate with prospects. Zoominfo held an IPO in June 2020 raising $935 million. Like similar software companies that are valuable to remote teams, demand for the Zoominfo platform increased because of the coronavirus pandemic. It is now used by over 20,000 businesses, with clients including T-Mobile, Zoom, Amazon, and Google.
Spotify is the world’s largest music streaming platform with over 381 million users across 184 markets around the world. The company was founded by Martin Lorentzon and Daniel Ek in 2008 in response to the shutdown of peer-to-peer music service Napster. Spotify became a success because it was the first company to determine how to distribute music legally and compensate the music industry at the same time. The platform now offers various curated music discovery services, music stations, audio customization, and private listening. In recent times, it has also ventured into the streaming of audiobooks, podcasts, comedy, poetry, and short stories.
Poshmark is a social commerce marketplace where users can buy and sell new or used clothing. The company was founded in 2011 by Manish Chandra, Tracy Sun, Gautam Golwala, and Chetan Pungaliya. Poshmark is one of many companies looking to profit from the explosive growth in the second-hand clothing and resale industry, which is expected to be worth around $51 billion by 2023. Scores of women, in particular, are opting to sell their unwanted fashion items online instead of donating them to charity or thrift stores.
Afterpay is an Australian fintech company operating in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and the United States. Founded in 2014 by Nick Molnar and Anthony Eisen, the company enjoyed a first-mover advantage in the buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) space. Less than seven years later, the company reached 13.1 million active customers with gross sales amounting to $10.1 billion. Despite its success, some suggest the company has lost its edge in the buy-now-pay-later space with the emergence of several high-profile competitors exerting their influence and giving merchants more choice.
Carvana is an online used car retailer with vending machines located around the United States. The company was founded in 2012 by Ryan Keeton, Ben Huston, and Ernest Garcia III. The company is the fastest growing online used car retailer in North America and was recently one of the youngest companies to be added to the Fortune 500 list. While Carvana is currently the only American company selling cars in vending machines, its growth and success have not gone unnoticed by other players. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the company’s major competitors.
Carvana is an online used car retailer with vending machines located around the United States. The company was founded in 2012 by Ryan Keeton, Ben Huston, and Ernest Garcia III. The company is the fastest growing online used car retailer in North America and was recently one of the youngest companies to be added to the Fortune 500 list. While Carvana is currently the only American company selling cars in vending machines, its growth and success have not gone unnoticed by other players. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the company’s major competitors.
GoodRx is an American healthcare company known for its telemedicine platform and a website and mobile app that track prescription drug prices. As part of this service, the company makes drug coupons available for free to consumers. GoodRx was created by Trevor Bezdek, Doug Hirsch, and Scott Marlette. Hirsch, an early employee at both Yahoo and Facebook, got the idea for the company after picking up a prescription with private health insurance and still having to pay $450. Given the high variability in prices between different pharmacies, Hirsh went on a mission to make prescription drug prices more transparent and affordable for ordinary Americans. Revenue in the second quarter of 2021 amounted to $177 million with over 7.5 million app customers using the GoodRx app. While the company was the first to provide a comprehensive list of pharmacy drug prices, new players have entered the market. The rest of this article will be devoted to looking at the main GoodRx competitors.
DoorDash is an online food ordering and delivery platform founded by Tony Xu, Stanley Tang, Andy Fang, and Evan Moore in 2013. Together with its subsidiaries, DoorDash has a 56% market share in food delivery and a further 60% in the convenience delivery sector.
In 1965, PepsiCo acquired Frito-Lay in what the chairmen of both companies called a “marriage made in heaven”. The resultant company transformed PepsiCo from a soft drink organization and set it on a path to becoming one of the world’s leading food and beverage companies. Today, PepsiCo claims to operate in more than 200 countries and territories around the world with seven distinct divisions and many successful brands.
The Coca-Cola Company has 21 different billion-dollar brands or brands that generate more than $1 billion or more in revenue each year. The company also sells its products in nearly every country in the world, with Cuba and North Korea the only two countries where it is not sold officially. What’s more, the Coca-Cola brand is worth $87.6 billion, making it one of the most valuable among all companies. Though these figures allow Coca-Cola to enjoy market dominance in many countries, the company is nevertheless subject to intense competition.
Headquartered in Burbank, California, Disney has global reach and influence with its universally popular resorts, movies, streaming services, video games, and merchandise. But as one of the largest media conglomerates in the world with a diverse range of products in multiple marketplaces, Disney is no stranger to competition.
International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is an American multinational technology company. It was founded in New York as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company in 1911 by Charles Ranlett Flint. IBM is a diverse company with a similarly diverse portfolio of products and services. It produces and sells hardware, middleware, and software. It also offers hosting and consultancy services in nanotechnology and mainframe computers. What’s more, IBM has a strong culture in research and development, filing the most U.S. patents of any business for the past 28 years.
Starbucks is a multinational coffee chain headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It was founded by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gordon Bowker in 1971. From a single and very humble bean roasting store in Pike Place Market, the company is now a global giant operating almost 33,000 stores around the world. This large global footprint obviously increases the competition for Starbucks in many different markets. The coffee industry itself is also highly competitive, with established players including McDonald’s and Dunkin’ Donuts.
Boeing is best known for designing and manufacturing commercial aircraft, but the company also produces helicopters, rockets, satellites, spacecraft, missiles, and telecommunications infrastructure. Founded in 1916 by William Boeing in Seattle, Washington, the company is one of the largest aerospace manufacturers and defense contractors in the world.
While Google (now Alphabet) has been born as a search engine, it is now a diversified company, even though its core business remains search, as most of its revenues still come from Google, the search engine, and YouTube, the “video engine.” However, as a tech giant, which business is primarily based on advertising, the company does compete with Facebook, Twitter, Microsoft (with Bing), and Amazon (with e-commerce search and its advertising machine).
Peloton is a media and exercise equipment company primarily making money making money via its fitness products. The idea for the company came from John Foley, who argued that technology could help time-poor individuals get a full workout at home. The company competes with other players like Bowflex, NordicTrack, Life Fitness, MYX Fitness.
IKEA was founded in 1943 by Swedish businessman Ingvar Kamprad as a mail-order catalog business. The company is best known for selling affordable flat-pack furniture, but it also sells home accessories and kitchen appliances. Today, IKEA offers approximately 9,500 products across 445 stores in 52 countries. With such broad reach, IKEA is not immune to competition.
The Airbnb story began in 2008 when two friends shared their accommodation with three travelers looking for a place to stay. Just over a decade later, it is estimated that the company now accounts for over 20% of the vacation rental industry. As a travel platform, Airbnb competes with other brands like Booking.com, VRBO, FlipKey, and given its massive amount of traffic from Google. Also, platforms like Google Travel can be considered potential competitors able to cannibalize part of Airbnb’s market.
Salesforce is a cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) provider, allowing businesses to build meaningful and sustained relationships with their customers. With robust, customizable software that integrates with social media, Gmail, and Microsoft Outlook, the Salesforce CRM platform is rated highly among businesses of all shapes and sizes. Recent data has shown that the company has captured 19.5% of the global CRM market.
In just fifteen short years, Shopify has grown from humble beginnings to become one of the fastest-growing eCommerce platforms online. The Shopify eCommerce solution is perhaps best suited to users who desire an easy, flexible and affordable starter solution for their online store. The provider now has upwards of 820,000 stores accounting for 20% of the total market share. However, the continued success of any company in the dynamic digital market is never guaranteed.
Netflix is the largest streaming video subscription service in the world. Created by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in 1997, the company has revolutionized the video content subscriptionmodel with over 139 million subscribers in 190 countries. The success of Netflix is due to two factors. The first is a recommendation system that gives suggestions on what customers should watch based on their viewing history. The second is the vast catalog of content on offer – produced by third parties and by Netflix itself. These factors have resulted in Netflix competing against influential TV networks and film producers for viewership.
YouTube is the most popular online video platform, a hybrid between a video search engine and a social media platform with a continuous feed prompted by social interactions and engagement. In fact, the platform is so popular that YouTube.com is the second most visited website on the internet. After being acquired by Google in 2006 for $1.65 billion, the platform now boasts over 2 billion registered users. Collectively, these users upload 500 hours of video every minute. The platform competes with other video engines like Vimeo, Dailymotion, and social platforms like IGTV, TikTok, and Twitch.
Zoom is a video platform, which enabled remote working. As such it competes with other large tech players like Google and Microsoft for the productivity space, and other startups like Slack and Go-To-Meetings.
As an electric automaker and builder of sports cars and now trucks, Tesla’s competitors comprise companies like Ford, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Lamborghini, Audi, Rivian Lucid Motors, Toyota, and more. At the same time, Tesla is an electric energy production and storage company (SolarCity); it competes with Sunrun, SunPower, and Vivint Solar. And as an autonomous driving company, it competes with companies like Zoox, Waymo, and Baidu with the self-driving software.
Amazon is a consumer e-commerce platform with a diversified business model spanning across e-commerce, cloud, advertising, streaming, and more. Over the years, Amazon acquired several companies. As it operates across several industries, Amazon has a wide range of competitors across each of those industries. For instance, Amazon E-commerce competes with Shopify, Wix, Google, Etsy, eBay, BigCommerce.
Gennaro is the creator of FourWeekMBA, which reached about four million business people, comprising C-level executives, investors, analysts, product managers, and aspiring digital entrepreneurs in 2022 alone | He is also Director of Sales for a high-tech scaleup in the AI Industry | In 2012, Gennaro earned an International MBA with emphasis on Corporate Finance and Business Strategy.
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