Global: How much are consumers intending to spend on streaming subscriptions and telecom services?

The pandemic has highlighted just how heavily reliant consumers have become on the services provided by telcos and content providers, and the vital role they have in how we work, learn and play. YouGov undertook analysis to check if consumers across 17 markets are intending to maintain or rein in their spending in the new year, especially on streaming and connectivity.

Nearly three in five global consumers say they intend spending about the same on telecom services (60%) and streaming subscriptions (54%)

Across each category we asked about, the most common answer was ‘about the same’ when it came to spending plans for 2022 compared to 2021. But overall, people are looking to save money (or at least not spend it in the usual ways). In every category, consumers told us that they plan to spend less in 2022 than they did in 2021 – and streaming subscriptions and media/telecoms services are no exception.

While only one in ten global consumers intend spending more on telecom services (10%) and streaming subscriptions (11%) in the next year, the share of those who intend to spend less is almost double (20% and 21% respectively).

Spending on media/telecom services

There do appear to be some notable differences by country, particularly if we look at Western markets compared to those in Asia. Nearly three in ten consumers from urban India and Indonesia indicate that they intend to spend more on telecom services in 2022 (29% each). This intention is significantly lower in some other markets where as few as one in twenty consumers plan to spend more (4% of consumers intend to spend more in Denmark, France and Sweden). By comparison to India and Indonesia, more than a quarter of consumers in France (30%) and Mexico (27%) intend to spend less in 2022.

Like in most markets, a higher share of consumers in the US and GB say they intend to spend less (22% and 19% respectively) on telecom services in 2022 than the share of those who intend to spend more (5% and 6%). However, 65% of Brits intend to spend about the same, which is eight points higher than the US (where a higher proportion simply don’t know about their spending plans for 2022).

Further analysis reveals that younger Brits are far more willing to increase their spending on telecoms compared to the older generation, with a notable difference. While 18-24-year-olds sit at 22%, only 7% of those aged between 25 and 34 years old are inclined to spend more, 4% of those aged 35-44, 2% of 45-54-year-olds and 3% of those aged 55 or more.

Spending on streaming subscriptions

The increase in both number and popularity of video streaming services, which coincided with more of us spending time at home, shows little sign of slowing. There is scant evidence of subscription fatigue as in most markets the majority of people intend spending about the same on streaming services in 2022.

Urban Indians and Indonesians continue to have the highest shares of consumers who intend to spend more in 2022 on streaming subscriptions (29% and 24% respectively). However, the share of consumers from these two markets who intend to spend less is also comparatively higher than some other markets (21% and 19% respectively).

Once again, the French don’t plan to splash out in 2022 with 29% saying they intend to spend less on streaming subscriptions. They’re followed by Mexico (27%) and Singapore (26%). However, the share of consumers who are unsure about their 2022 spending plans is higher when it comes to streaming subscriptions. In the Polish and French markets around a quarter of consumers (23%) are unsure about their plans. And while this uncertainty is not as high everywhere, there is a degree of it in every market we polled.

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Methodology: The data is based on the interviews of adults aged 18 and over in 17 markets with sample sizes varying between 511 and 2,628 for each market. All interviews were conducted online in November 2021. Data from each market uses a nationally representative sample apart from Mexico and India, which use urban representative samples, and Indonesia and Hong Kong, which use online representative samples.