{"id":20564,"date":"2026-07-29T04:05:53","date_gmt":"2026-07-28T23:05:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=20564"},"modified":"2026-07-29T04:05:53","modified_gmt":"2026-07-28T23:05:53","slug":"netflix-chosen-over-bbc-by-uk-audiences-ofcom-media-nations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=20564","title":{"rendered":"Netflix Chosen Over BBC By UK Audiences: Ofcom Media Nations:"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\t<a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/tag\/netflix\/\" id=\"auto-tag_netflix\" data-tag=\"netflix\">Netflix<\/a> has narrowly become UK audiences\u2019 first port of call.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tAccording to <a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/tag\/ofcom\/\" id=\"auto-tag_ofcom\" data-tag=\"ofcom\">Ofcom<\/a>\u2019s latest <a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/tag\/media-nations\/\" id=\"auto-tag_media-nations\" data-tag=\"media-nations\">Media Nations<\/a> report, 26% of UK viewers in 2025 said the streamer is where they turn to first when thinking about what to watch, ahead of the <a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/tag\/bbc\/\" id=\"auto-tag_bbc\" data-tag=\"bbc\">BBC<\/a> on 25% and well up on ITV (15%) and <a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/tag\/youtube\/\" id=\"auto-tag_youtube\" data-tag=\"youtube\">YouTube<\/a> (10%). <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tThe figures mark a shift from the prior year, which was 28% for the BBC and 23% for Netflix, although an Ofcom spokeswoman said there have been some changes in methodology so these numbers are indicative only. <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tBroken down by age, the figures shift vastly, with 36% of 16-24 year olds opting for Netflix first over just 14% for the BBC. At the other end of the age scale, 5% of over-75s choose Netflix first while 48% switch on the 100-year-old national broadcaster.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tThe regulator\u2019s research comes after several years of Netflix making big UK hits like <em>Adolescence, The Gentlemen <\/em>and <em>Baby Reindeer<\/em>. The BBC, meanwhile, is renegotiating its funding model and <a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/2026\/07\/director-general-brittin-bbc-licence-fee-expanded-netflix-1236981705\/\">has floated forcing streaming subscribers <\/a>to pay the \u00a3180 ($240) TV licence fee even if they don\u2019t watch the BBC.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tOfcom\u2019s research also found that more adults associate Netflix with \u201chigh quality content,\u201d \u201ccontent that is relevant to me\u201d and \u201ccreative content\u201d than the BBC, with YouTube topping the corporation on the latter. The BBC ranked higher than Netflix and YouTube in areas like \u201ccontent that offers a different point of view from my own.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tThankfully for the BBC, far more adults still associate it with British drama (66%) than Netflix, although given the streamer is American, Netflix executives may have been quietly impressed by its figure of 24%, which was only just behind the UK\u2019s Channel 5 (now 5) on 28%.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tIn particular, 2025 saw a \u201cpronounced\u201d number of older viewers flock to drama on streaming platforms, Ofcom found, with average hours watched by audiences over the age of 75 skyrocketing by 56% to 36 hours per person per year, while for 55-74 year olds the figure rose 28% to 85 hours per person per year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tThe BBC and Netflix were neck-and-neck for most-watched content of 2025 at four apiece in the top 10, with <em>KPop Demon Hunters <\/em>topping the list with 24.4 million viewers, ahead of <em>Adolescence <\/em>with 16 million for its most-watched episode and the BBC\u2019s <em>Celebrity Traitors <\/em>at 14.8 million.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tThe streamers also had a good year financially in the UK. Revenues for these big players shot up 18% to \u00a35.2B, which Ofcom put down to \u201csubscription price increases rather than subscriber growth.\u201d During this period, the proportion of advertising tier subscribers to the likes of Netflix and Disney+ rose rapidly, Ofcom said. Pay-TV revenues were also up 4% to \u00a36.2B.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\t<strong>Third-party spend record<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-content-image \/\/  \">\n<figure class=\"o-figure   size-large alignnone lrv-u-max-width-100p\" style=\"width:100%; max-width:1024px;\">\n<div class=\"c-lazy-image  \">\n<div class=\"lrv-a-crop-16x9\" style=\"padding-bottom:calc((578\/1024)*100%);\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"c-lazy-image__img lrv-u-background-color-grey-lightest lrv-u-width-100p lrv-u-display-block lrv-u-height-auto\" src=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/themes\/pmc-deadline-2019\/assets\/public\/lazyload-fallback.jpg\" data-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?w=300\" alt=\"Jamie Bell and Richard Gadd in 'Half Man'\" data-lazy-srcset=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg 4285w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=150,85 150w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=300,169 300w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=1024,578 1024w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=1536,867 1536w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=2048,1157 2048w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=600,338 600w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=177,100 177w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=125,70 125w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=660,370 660w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=1280,723 1280w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=1000,563 1000w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=910,511 910w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=681,383 681w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=450,253 450w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=250,140 250w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=296,166 296w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=248,139 248w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=200,112 200w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=270,152 270w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=60,34 60w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=352,199 352w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=110,62 110w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=285,161 285w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=320,181 320w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=640,361 640w, https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/558508-e1777039327927.jpg?resize=800,452 800w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(min-width: 87.5rem) 1000px, (min-width: 78.75rem) 681px, (min-width: 48rem) 450px, (max-width: 48rem) 250px\" height=\"578\" width=\"1024\" decoding=\"async\"\/><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div><figcaption class=\"c-figcaption  lrv-u-font-size-12 lrv-u-padding-tb-025\">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\" lrv-u-font-size-16 lrv-u-font-size-14@mobile-max lrv-a-font-body-m u-font-style-italic lrv-u-font-weight-bold lrv-u-font-family-primary u-line-height-20 u-letter-spacing-0 u-line-height-18@mobile-max\">Richard Gadd\u2019s \u2018Half Man\u2019: co-produced for the BBC and HBO.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<cite class=\" lrv-u-text-transform-uppercase lrv-u-color-grey lrv-u-font-size-10 lrv-a-font-basic-xxs lrv-u-margin-l-025\">BBC\/Mam Tor Productions\/Anne Binckebanck<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tLast year was dominated by chatter around a <a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/2025\/01\/bbc-alarm-uk-scripted-funding-crisis-productions-stuck-in-limbo-1236266257\/\">scripted co-production crisis<\/a> but in the end 2025 proved a record year in terms of third-party funding for broadcaster content. <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tThis figure rose by more than 10% to \u00a3748M, with high-profile examples including the BBC and<em> <\/em>Prime Video\u2019s <em>The Night Manager <\/em>and Richard Gadd\u2019s new show <em>Half Man <\/em>for the BBC and HBO. Third-party funding doesn\u2019t only incorporate co-productions but includes the lucrative UK high-end TV tax credit and distributor advances.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tUnsurprisingly, the majority (around two thirds) of third-party spend went on drama but there were increases in lower-budget genres like factual and children\u2019s.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto     \">\n\tDespite the 2025 record, Ofcom said \u201cchallenges\u201d remain with third-party funding as \u201cthe global streaming market continues to prioritise projects with international appeal and full rights ownership.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Netflix has narrowly become UK audiences\u2019 first port of call. According to Ofcom\u2019s latest Media Nations report, 26% of UK viewers in 2025 said the streamer is where they turn to first when thinking about what to watch, ahead of the BBC on 25% and well up on ITV (15%) and YouTube (10%). The figures&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20565,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/deadline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/A_103_Unit_00512_RT.jpg?w=1024","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20564","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20564","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=20564"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20564\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/20565"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=20564"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=20564"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=20564"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}