On today’s ExchangeWire digest: UK Video Sector Grew 10% in 2023; Amazon Launching Video Prime Ads at $30 CPMs; Twitch to Cut 35% of Workforce...

The value of the UK video, games, and music markets increased for the eleventh successive year in 2023 bringing it to a record high of £11.9bn, preliminary figures from digital entertainment and retail association ERA reveal. Video was the fastest growing sector in 2023, with an increase of 10%; SVOD specifically grew by 12.8%, making up 89% of revenue from the video market. Contrastingly, games sales grew by less than 3%, with physical games software sales falling. 

With SVOD continuing to flourish, Amazon is poised to reap the benefits: the tech giant has announced that Prime Video ads will be launching with CPMs (cost per thousand impressions) in the low to mid USD $30 (£23.55) range. This is a competitive pricing, given Netflix’s average pricing is now USD $39 – $45 (£30.62 – £35.33), reportedly lowered due to underwhelming initial results from its advertising business as well as the threat of new competitors. Currently, 288.9 million households globally are subscribed to Amazon Prime. 

Meanwhile, Amazon Inc owned livestreaming platform Twitch prepares to cut 35% of its workforce, equivalent to about 500 employees. The expected cuts follow several executive departures at the end of last year, from the company’s chief customer officer, chief content officer, and chief revenue officer. Twitch’s CEO, Tom Clancy, said that the platform’s user and revenue growth had “not kept pace with our expectations”. Last March, Twitch laid off around 400 employees. 

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