If you feel like you’re watching commercials with TV in between – instead of the other way around – you’re not alone.
Streaming ads have increased this year as consumers flock to cheaper, ad-supported subscriptions steady flow inflation.
Advertising minutes per hour rose 18% from January to August among top streamers in the US, according to data from entertainment research firm Ampere Analysis shared exclusively with Business Insider.
“Everyone is trying to squeeze more value out of existing subscribers because it has become so much harder and so much more expensive, in terms of customer acquisition costs, to continue to grow,” said Brandon Katz, an analyst at entertainment data company Greenlight Analytics.
Advertising costs have increased on all but one streamer in Ampere’s analysis. Of the nine most viewed streaming services, measured by Nielsen’s American ratingsOnly Prime Video showed users fewer minutes of ads per hour last month than at the start of the year, Ampere found.
According to Ampere, streamers showed an average of just over five minutes of ads per hour to audiences in August. (The research firm said it changed the way it tracks ad loads early this year, making comparisons with previous years difficult.)
Netflix saw the biggest increase in ad traffic from January to August, although it still shows the fewest ads per hour of any major streamer, at a rate of less than 2.5 minutes per hour.
Paramount+, on the other hand, shows the most ads per hour on average, Ampere discovered. It runs 9 minutes of ads per hour, meaning fans of Taylor Sheridan shows like “Landman” spend about 15% of their viewing time watching commercials.
Disney’s streamers are next on the list, at 7.5 and 8.5 minutes per hour on Disney+ and Hulu, respectively.
There is no significant correlation between streamers’ ad price and average ad load, Business Insider found.
Streaming Profit Promotion
The extra ads audiences are seeing on streamers come amid a profit boost among Hollywood giants.
“Management teams are now being pressured by investors to demonstrate how they can capture the largest possible share of streaming retail value and advertising revenue, at the highest defensible long-term margin,” Hernan Lopez, the founder of media consultancy Owl & Co., wrote in a report in early September.
Every major streaming service has raised prices over the past twelve months in the hope that subscribers would either pay more or switch to an advertising plan.
Streamers with scaled advertising companies can charge higher rates to advertisers than streamers with few users. And while ad-supported subscriptions cost less, they are can generate more sales per user than more expensive tiers.
“Once you achieve scale, ad-supported tiers are more lucrative than ad-free tiers,” says Katz.
About 11% of subscribers to ad-supported streamers had switched from higher-priced ad-free plans as of the first quarter, up from 7% in 2024, according to subscription data company Antenna.
Ad-supported streamers, including free serviceshave become increasingly popular as paid services continue to raise prices.
Ad plans generated 4 million net signups in the first quarter, while ad-free plans actually saw more cancellations than signups, according to Antenna. Nearly 60% of streaming users choose advertising plans when they sign up, the company found.
Consumers are “more than willing to tolerate ads” if they can watch their favorite shows for less, says Mike Proulx, research director at Forrester. As streamers have raised prices, TV fans have moved from primarily ad-free services to blended ad-level subscriptions.
“They are balancing their streaming portfolio,” Proulx said.
