In the market for just over 18 months, discovery+ has transformed the way sports is delivered on OTT. Within the qualifying period, this has seen discovery+ attract millions of subscribers and establish a new model for how sport can build real scale in OTT.
With a distinctly differentiated approach, discovery+ has achieved this by going against traditional industry thinking by combining its sports OTT proposition with its entertainment portfolio under one unified offering. In doing so, discovery+ can serve a broad cohort: from die-hard fans to casual viewers and big eventers. Importantly, this extends its appeal throughout the household.
Integrating sport onto discovery+, including the unprecedented presentation of every moment of two Olympics within 7 months, was an unparalleled success. For both Beijing 2022 and Tokyo 2020, discovery+ drove significantly increased numbers of new paid subscribers and streaming viewers compared to a sports-only offering.
How people use the product underlines the true success of discovery+ and its differentiated OTT strategy. Compared to previous sports-only services, sport subscribers stay for longer, are more likely to sign up for a long-term pass and engage with more content. Those joining for the Olympics were four times more likely to stay subscribed if they had also engaged discovery+’s entertainment content – underlining the increased value of this OTT proposition.
By combining sport and entertainment streaming in one product, the data shows sports fans receive higher lifetime subscriber value, whilst more and more people are streaming sports thanks to discovery+ bringing it to a new and broader audience.
