US OTT Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends & Forecasts (2025 - 2030)

US OTT Market Trends and Insights

Rising Cord-Cutting Rates Among US Households Accelerating Direct-to-Consumer Adoption

Cable subscriber losses and streaming subscriber gains illustrate a decisive migration to direct-to-consumer delivery. Netflix’s global base surpassed 270 million in 2025, while pay-TV churn remained elevated.^{[1[ Netflix Inc., “Q4 2024 Shareholder Letter,” netflixinvestor.com} Younger viewers initiated the trend, but households aged 55+ are now accelerating adoption. Live sports rights—such as Amazon’s exclusive NFL Thursday Night Football package—are being priced at premiums because they drive incremental conversions, pushing platforms to pool resources for marquee events.

Rapid Expansion of Fiber and 5G Networks Enabling Higher-Quality Streaming

Gigabit-class fixed broadband and nationwide mid-band 5G coverage have reduced buffering and unlocked bandwidth for 4K and HDR streams. Netflix’s 2025 home-page redesign featuring AI-assisted discovery relies on those network gains to serve real-time, rich visuals, CNN. Higher bitrates and low-latency delivery now permit experimental formats such as choose-your-own-ending films and synchronized social-watch parties, adding incremental engagement without compromising picture quality.

Intensifying Content Spend and Original Production by OTT Giants Sustaining Subscriber Growth

Netflix allocated USD 18 billion for new content in 2024 and registered a 13% revenue lift as a result. Apple TV+ continues to rely almost entirely on originals, while Disney, Amazon, and Warner Bros. Discovery have redirected portions of theatrical and cable budgets to streaming exclusives. As catalogs grow, churn management hinges on staggered releases, cross-franchise universes, and data-driven retention offers.

Increasing Penetration of Connected TVs Boosting Big-Screen Streaming in Living Rooms

Smart-TV ownership crossed 80% of broadband homes in 2025, eclipsing external devices. Operating-system providers, notably Roku and Samsung, now intermediate content discovery, forcing services to fund prime on-screen real estate. The shift toward living-room streaming raises expectations for cinematic video quality and stable playback, nudging platforms to adjust encoding and CDN strategies for large-screen environments.

Growing Content Licensing Costs and Competition for Premium IP Squeezing Margins

Escalating bids for must-have franchises are pressuring operating margins, especially as subscriber growth decelerates. Titles such as “House of the Dragon” and “The Boys” failed to generate proportionate subscriber spikes, highlighting diminishing returns. Platforms have responded by accelerating ad-tier rollouts; digital video advertising is forecast to exceed USD 62.9 billion in 2024, capturing 52% of all US video ad dollars MediaPost.

Fragmented Data-Privacy Regulation Increasing Ad-Targeting Compliance Complexity

Rules such as the California Privacy Rights Act elevate compliance costs for ad-supported services. FAST channels, whose impressions jumped 28% in 2024, must now invest in contextual targeting and consent-management systems to avoid fines, Amagi. ^{[2]Amagi, “10th Quarterly Global FAST Report,” amagi.com} The heavier regulatory burden could moderate short-term monetization gains, even as advertisers migrate budgets to connected TV.

Segment Analysis

By Revenue Model: Ad-Supported Offerings Proliferate

SVoD remained the revenue bulwark, contributing 58% of the 2024 spend. However, AVoD and FAST services are forecast to mint the highest incremental revenue, expanding at 9.8% CAGR to 2030. The US OTT video streaming market size for ad-supported tiers is projected to climb from USD 50.1 billion in 2024 to USD 88.6 billion by 2030. Subscriber fatigue encourages price-sensitive viewers to pivot toward free or lightly priced plans embedded with advertising. Hybrid bundles such as Disney’s Disney+/Hulu/ESPN+ trio continue to bundle ad-supported and premium tiers, boosting lifetime value while lowering churn.

The US OTT video streaming market has responded with a tiered framework in which high-ARPU subscribers retain ad-free access, whereas casual viewers accept targeted spots. By next year, ad-tier penetration will reach 36% for Disney+, 15% for Netflix, and 84% for Peacock, illustrating a clear migration path toward advertising-helped economics MediaPost. Transactional VOD persists for premium movie rentals, but its share has plateaued as consumers favor bundled options.

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase

By Device Type: Smart TVs Reshape Discovery and Monetization

Smart TVs captured 40.2% of viewing revenue in 2024 and redefined homepage placement as a strategic battleground. The US OTT video streaming market share for smart-TV consumption is likely to cross 47% by 2030 as interfaces integrate voice search, shoppable overlay ads, and dynamic rows promoting ad-tier upgrades. Smartphones and tablets will grow fastest at 10.5% CAGR, driven by commuting and travel usage, plus 5G coverage.

Game consoles retain a loyal cohort for premium gaming plus streaming bundles, while laptops and desktops serve work-from-home usage spikes. As smart-TV home screens evolve into ad inventory, OEMs like Vizio and Samsung are monetizing first-party data, thereby shifting bargaining power from apps to hardware makers. Short-form vertical video, tested inside the Netflix mobile feed, highlights the adaptability of the US OTT video streaming industry across screen sizes.

By Content Genre: Sports Becomes a Subscriber Catalyst

Movies and scripted series held 62.1% of 2024 revenue, but sports rights have become the principal catalyst for new sign-ups. The US OTT video streaming market size for live sports is projected to advance at an 11% CAGR through 2030, buoyed by streaming-exclusive rights to NFL, MLS, and Formula 1 events. Amazon Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football and Apple’s MLS Season Pass exemplify rights-led differentiation.

News and information occupy a growing share within FAST, leveraging linear-style live feeds at minimal distribution cost. Kids’ programming, exemplified by Disney+ and Netflix’s co-viewing catalogs, underpins family plan retention. Niche genres ranging from anime to Korean dramas continue to punch above their weight, fueling acquisitions such as Sony’s purchase of Crunchyroll in 2024 to deepen loyalty among superfans.

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase

By Age Group: Older Audiences Propel Incremental Growth

Consumers aged 18-34 remained the largest slice at 45.3% in 2024. Yet the 55+ cohort is forecast to post a 12% CAGR—the fastest pace of any group—through 2030. The US OTT video streaming market size attributable to viewers older than 55 is expected to jump from USD 12.6 billion in 2024 to USD 24.9 billion by 2030. Adoption is fueled by simplified smart-TV set-ups, bundled broadband offers, and familiar legacy-brand catalogs migrating from cable.

Younger viewers continue to multitask between screens, reinforcing a mobile-first content strategy for short clips, while family subscriptions targeting <18 years remain pivotal in driving overall household adoption. Platforms now deploy personalized homepages that dynamically balance kids’ recommendations, sports alerts, and prestige drama rows, ensuring breadth without overwhelming any age segment.

Geography Analysis

Geography Analysis

Regional disparities in broadband penetration still shape platform traction within the US OTT video streaming market. Urban clusters such as New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago exhibit near-universal adoption, whereas certain rural counties lag due to limited fiber rollouts. Nonetheless, the market reached saturation territory in 2025, shifting operator KPIs from gross additions to average view-time and ad impressions Digital TV News.

Smart-TV density is highest in coastal metros, fostering a discovery paradigm dominated by operating-system algorithms. In lower-income Southern regions, FAST channels generate outsized engagement, aided by local news and nostalgia offerings. The US OTT video streaming market share for FAST in these geographies already exceeds 35%, signaling a structurally price-conscious cohort.

Midwestern and Mountain-West states have emerged as battlegrounds for sports-centric subscriptions, especially during NFL and college football seasons. Platforms co-promote mobile downloads to mitigate connectivity gaps during travel. As telcos bundle unlimited 5G home internet with discounted ad tiers, regional broadband-provider alliances will likely dictate incremental subscriber gains beyond 2027.