Quality of Spanish-Language and International TV Content is Key

Latinx TV content viewers in the U.S. over-index for subscription streaming services (SVODs) compared to total market consumers, according to the newly released FOCUS Latinx Volume 1: Subscriptions report by Horowitz Research.

The new report finds 76% of Latinx TV content viewers subscribe to at least one SVOD service, compared to 67% of consumers overall. When considering password-sharing and promotional bundles, over 8 in 10 Latinx have access to at least one SVOD. Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Peacock, and HBO Max top the list of most popular subscription streaming services among Latinx, with over half having access to each.

One in 5 (20%) Latinx have access (either subscription or some free way to access) to Vix+, the premium service offered by TelevisaUnivision following its acquisition of Spanish-language streamer Pantaya (the service was just rebranded this past week to Vix, a tiered service which will include both ree and subscription options).

OTT Rapidly Increasing Among Latinx

Usage of free OTT services is also rapidly increasing among Latinx audiences, given the proliferation of new free services. In 2019, over 1 in 10 (14%) Latinx consumers said they use free streaming services; this year, 3 in 4 (76%) report using them. Increased usage of free streaming services is largely driven by free ad-supported TV (FAST) services, which almost half (48%) of Latinx viewers use. The top FAST services used by Latinx viewers include: YouTube, Tubi, Pluto TV, Roku, and Freevee. Free, Hispanic-targeted streaming services, like OnDemandLatino and ViX, are gaining traction.

Indeed, Spanish-language content remains important: 7 in 10 (72%) Latinx viewers watch Spanish-language TV content at least occasionally, while 6 in 10 (63%) watch international content. It is also a driver for subscriptions: Nearly 6 in 10 (58%) say that Spanish-language TV content or content geared towards Hispanic audiences is important for their household to have.

However, the way the streaming ecosystem is evolving could make it challenging for services that stream exclusively Spanish-language content to attract the level of viewership other services enjoy, some Horowitz findings suggest. Like most consumers, Latinx TV content viewers say they often have a hard time finding something to watch; in fact, they over-index compared to the average consumer for feeling this way. This could be driven by the need to search across more services — including Spanish-language and international services as well as mainstream ones — to find the content they are interested in viewing.

Improved Content Management Systems are Key

Improved content management on streaming sites is helping make Spanish-language and/or Latinx-themed content discovery a more consumer-friendly process: 6 in 10 Latinx surveyed watch content they find by visiting curated Latinx-themed collections on their streaming services at least occasionally, according to another recent Horowitz study, FOCUS Latinx Volume II: Viewing Behaviors 2023.

And when Latinx consumers were asked, unaided, which streaming service comes to mind for having the best selection of Hispanic/Latinx-themed content, Netflix tops the list by a wide margin, even compared to brands that have traditionally dominated Spanish-language television.

“There’s no question that Latinx audiences are among the best customers for streaming services, and that Spanish-language and Latinx-themed content is in demand,” notes Adriana Waterston, Chief Revenue Officer and Insights & Strategy Lead for Horowitz Research. “But services that stream exclusively in Spanish need to compete with the existential threat of an ever-increasing number of mainstream services beefing up their Spanish-language and international libraries as well as offering Spanish audio and/or subtitles for most of their content. Consumer marketing to keep Spanish-language services top-of-mind, combined with strategies to drive discovery tune-in, will be critical for them to survive and thrive.”