Discovery reports eight times more viewers are streaming Olympic content compared to the same period for the 2018 Winter Olympics. Total new paid subscribers to Discovery’s streaming services are already surpassing 2018 with a week of competition still to go.
Nearly three-quarters of a billion streaming minutes have been consumed on Discovery’s subscription services so far, more than 18 times higher than the same period of PyeongChang 2018. Average minutes consumed per viewer across discovery+ and Eurosport streaming services has more than doubled, as well as people on average watching 29% longer on television vs PyeongChang 2018.
In the UK, the 2018 Winter Olympics were the first to be screened on Eurosport under new broadcasting rights terms between the BBC and Discovery. But four years ago, streamers accessed coverage on Eurosport Player. This is now being phased out in favour of Discovery+. At the same time, the availability of Discovery+ on various smart TVs and boxes is more widespread than Eurosport Player.
Jean-Briac Perrette, President & CEO, Discovery Streaming & International, said:
“The Olympics are off to a strong start across all our platforms, with discovery+ at the forefront of this early success as the growth of our streaming service continues to significantly outperform. It is also reaffirming the power and value of integrating sports into our discovery+ entertainment service. As well as attracting a significant number of new discovery+ subscribers, sports broadens its appeal throughout the whole household and provides consumers an even greater, more retentive value proposition. Through just this first week, more than a third of new discovery+ Olympics subscribers have already consumed other entertainment content on the platform.”