More than 70% of UK homes now have access to at least one subscription streaming service, according to new data from Barb.
Barb said 20.8 million UK homes (70.3%) had access to an SVOD service in Q1 2026, up slightly from 20.6 million homes in the previous quarter.
HBO Max is not yet included in the figures because the service only launched in the UK on March 26, 2026. Barb said it will be added to the Establishment Survey from Q2 if household penetration exceeds 5%.
Netflix remained the largest service in the market with access in 18.1 million homes (61%). Growth was driven increasingly by advertising-supported subscriptions, with 40% of Netflix households now on the ad tier – equivalent to 7.2 million homes, up from 6.9 million in Q4.
Amazon Prime Video reached 13.7 million homes (46.1%), marginally down quarter-on-quarter, although its ad-supported offer continued to dominate. Barb said 88% of Prime Video homes were now on the advertising tier, representing 12 million households.
Disney+ continued its steady expansion, reaching 7.8 million homes (26.1%), while its ad tier grew to 2.8 million households. Discovery+ and Paramount+ were level at 3.5 million homes each, while Apple TV+ rose to 3.1 million homes and NOW remained stable at 2 million.
Doug Whelpdale, Head of Insight at Barb, said: “For the first time, more than 70% of UK homes had access to an SVOD service in the first quarter of this year. All services showed modest quarter-on-quarter changes.”
He added: “While the Disney+ and Netflix ad tiers had quarterly growth of 8.7% and 4.8% to stand at 2.8m and 7.2m homes in turn, they are up 68% and 50% respectively year-on-year.”
The figures underline the growing importance of advertising-supported streaming models as platforms seek additional revenues and prepare for intensified competition.
The addition of HBO Max to Barb’s reporting from Q2 is likely to provide an early indication of the impact of Warner Bros Discovery’s re-entry into the UK direct-to-consumer market, particularly on premium SVOD subscriptions and advertising-supported viewing.
Source: https://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2026/05/21/more-than-70-of-uk-homes-now-access-svod/
