Following yesterday’s Netflix announcement that its AVOD tier has reached 40 million monthly active users, it is important to understand the Advertising Video on Demand (AVOD) Hispanic opportunity. At the Upfront presentations in New York City, companies including Televisa-Univision, Telemundo, Canela Media, MyCode, and Estrella Media touted their AVOD offerings. Pierluigi Gazzolo, Chief Executive Officer of ViX, the largest global Spanish-language streaming service, took the stage and punctuated ViX’s momentum and growth. According to Gazzolo, ViX has reached 50 million monthly active users globally, with 70% growth in the U.S. year over year. Gazzolo announced that ViX’s new ad-supported premium tier is now available (starting Wednesday, May 15.) Canela Media executives presented Canela.TV new content, the relaunch of CANELA.TV’s app and new content for brands looking to reach Hispanic viewers. MyCode, on its part, announced a partnership with Crackle.
There is a strong rationale for the offering of AVOD services to the Hispanic population. According to Adriana Waterston, EVP and Insights and Strategy Lead for Horowitz Research, “compared to Total Market, Latinx over-index for the usage of Tubi, Pluto TV, YouTube, Vudu, Crunchyroll, ViX, and OnDemandLatino. There is an increase in usage of several services compared to last year, particularly of Tubi, Pluto TV, and Freevee.” Waterston cites data from the just released Horowitz findings from FOCUS Latinx Volume I: Subscriptions 2024, an annual report that tracks the evolution of pay and free TV, streaming internet, and mobile environments among U.S. Hispanic/Latinx audiences. According to the study, overall, 8% of Latinx use Vix (the free version) at least monthly, and this is higher among Spanish-dominant (17% use it monthly) and bilingual (8%) Latinx, compared to their English-oriented counterparts (2%).
Latinx TV households over-index compared to Total Market for subscriptions (and access, which includes those who access the service without paying a full subscription) to several top SVOD platforms, including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Hulu, Max, Apple TV+, ESPN+, Starz, and discovery+.)
Habits of the viewers of Latin content: Hispanic AVOD grows
In summary, according to Horowitz, MVPD decline, rising SVOD, and AVOD demand for Spanish content. The study indicates that viewers of Latinx content are more inclined to possess and utilize subscription streaming services (78% compared to 63% overall), free streaming services (80% among Latinx, as opposed to 67% overall), and virtual MVPDs like YouTube TV, Sling, Hulu with Live TV, etc. (36% versus 23%).
The utilization of free streaming services alone has surged from just 14% among Latinx audiences in 2019. Among Latinx households, the top-used SVODs include Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Hulu, and Max, while Tubi, Pluto TV, YouTube, Freevee, and Roku lead the list of FAST (Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV) platforms used.
The utilization of free streaming services alone has surged from just 14% among Latinx audiences in 2019 to 80% in 2024.
“The rules of engagement with Latine audiences have not inherently changed despite variations in which platforms and services consumers use to access content,” says Waterston. “Services hoping to attract and retain Latine audiences must continue to focus on presenting the best Spanish-language offerings with high quality, desirable new content as well as robust libraries of classic Spanish shows and movies to represent real value for these viewers.”
The preeminent Hispanic AVOD services are not necessarily those that are from companies that exclusively target a Hispanic audience: “Note that the services with the widest reach still are the mainstream services, though many, if not all, have Spanish-language content on them, ” Horowitz adds. The dedicated Spanish-language services (both free and paid) have lower penetration even though they are 100% in Spanish, though certainly, their appeal is directly to those who are heavier Spanish-language viewers (Spanish-dominant and bilingual Latinx), says Waterston.
“The dedicated Spanish language services (both free and paid) have lower penetration even though they are 100% in Spanish, though certainly, their appeal is directly to those who are heavier Spanish-language viewers (Spanish-dominant and bilingual LatinX
The latest study indicates a continued decline in MVPD (cable or satellite) penetration among Latinx audiences. This year’s report shows that only 39% of Latinx households are subscribed (compared to 48% of overall consumers). This marks a significant drop from the 60% of Latinx households still subscribed to cable or satellite services, according to the 2023 report.
Three out of four Latinx viewers consume at least some content in Spanish
Since their inception, Latinx audiences have been pioneers in adopting and utilizing subscription streaming services, yet many Latinx households also maintained subscriptions to traditional services, as highlighted. Access to Spanish-language content has been critical for Latinx audiences to retain streaming and MVPD services.
Nowadays, a significant reason for the decline in subscribers to traditional cable/satellite services is the increasing quantity and quality of Spanish-language and Latinx-themed content available through streaming platforms.
The study reveals that three out of four (75%) Latinx viewers consume at least some content in Spanish, across different acculturation segments, and two out of three Spanish-dominant and bilingual Latinx consumers (68% and 66%, respectively) consider having Spanish-language content as an essential factor when choosing a TV service.
