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Netflix has twice as many UK subscribers as Amazon

Will Smith stars with Joel Edgerton in the Netflix movie Bright (Netflix)
Will Smith stars with Joel Edgerton in the Netflix movie Bright (Netflix)

Netflix has nearly twice the numbers of subscribers in the UK as Amazon, new figures show.

The US streaming service boasts 7.5 million UK fans, while Amazon Prime Video has just 3.8 million.

TV audience analysts the Broadcasters’ Audience Research Board (Barb) also revealed that Sky’s NOW TV service achieved the largest annual subscription growth of 70%, adding 600,000 subscribers in the last year to feature in 1.4 million homes.

MORE: Google Trends is a surprisingly good way to predict Netflix subscriber growth

Netflix – home to such hit shows as House of Cards, The Crown and Black Mirror – has also been locked in a battle with Amazon to produce big budget, in-house movies to rival Tinsel Town.

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Most recently, Hollywood A-lister Will Smith stars in dystopian thriller Bright and Netflix also financed the surprise hit Our Souls At Night, which features Robert Redford and Jane Fonda.

Amazon has also been pumping money into bespoke shows, signing former Top Gear hosts Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond to a multi-million pound deal for a new car show, The Grand Tour.

MORE: BBC made millions after closing iPlayer licence fee ‘loophole’

It’s also produced hit shows such as The Man in the High Castle and Vikings.

Jeremy Clarkson, left, Richard Hammond and James May attend Amazon’s “The Grand Tour” season two premiere in New York. (Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Jeremy Clarkson, left, Richard Hammond and James May attend Amazon’s “The Grand Tour” season two premiere in New York. (Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)

The Barb report also reveals that while one in three UK Netflix users also have Amazon, almost two in three Amazon users also subscribe to Netflix.

MORE: Amazon says over 5 billion items shipped in 2017 via Prime

The total number of people with subscription video on demand (SVoD)services in the UK reached 9.5 million in 2017 – up 24% year-on-year – further illustrating the growing challenge terrestrial broadcasters face.

“When you take into account homes that have more than one service, we can project that there are over 12 million subscriptions to SVoD services,” said Barb.

“This is in addition to any pay-TV packages to which homes are committed, and the SVoD market has not yet reached maturity.

“In conclusion, we can see that access to SVoD services is highly prevalent in audiences under 55, where these services exist and co-habit alongside broadcast platforms. Far from being niche, SVoD services are now an established part of the television ecosystem,” it added.

The ‘premium’ package on Netflix costs £9.99 a month, which gives you ultra HD, and the ability to watch four screens at the same time. Amazon Prime costs £79 for a year, for which you get access to the TV and video streaming service for ‘free’ as well as next-day deliveries on parcels bought through its website.