iWorld
Content discovery is overwhelming nearly half of American audiences: Nielsen report
Mumbai: A nearly 20 per cent increase in unique programme titles over the past three years has almost half of the American audiences (46 per cent) feeling overwhelmed by the growing number of services and platforms that makes it more difficult to find the content they’re looking for, revealed audience measurement firm Nielsen’s inaugural ‘State of Play’ report.
According to the report, consumers now have over 817,000 unique programme titles as of February 2022 vs more than 646,000 as recently as December 2019. The increase in content also comes with an increase in consumption, as 18 per cent of Americans are now paying for four streaming services vs the seven per cent who did so in 2019.
In February of this year, content from streaming platforms accounted for just under 29 per cent of consumers’ total time with TV, ahead of broadcast programming (26.4 per cent) for the fourth straight month, according to Nielsen’s The Gauge, its monthly total TV and streaming snapshot. In total, Americans watched nearly 15 million years’ worth of streaming video content last year.
When asked about whether bundled streaming services might make it easier for consumers to find the content they are seeking, 64 per cent of respondents indicated they wish there was a bundled video streaming service that would allow them o choose as few or as many video streaming services that they wanted.
“The inaugural State of Play really underscores the fact that we’ve entered the next phase of streaming, based on the trends we have been detailing about streaming over the past few years,” said Nielsen SVP product strategy Brian Fuhrer. “We’ve moved from infancy into adolescence and all the complexities that one would expect at that point. It’s not just that streaming is increasing year over year. Now consumers want access simplified and the explosion of services has renewed discussions around bundling and aggregation. Ultimately, these challenges signal an opportunity as the industry harnesses streaming for long-term business growth.”
‘State of Play’ highlights the increasing boom of video content in both linear and streaming in recent years. Overall, Americans increased their average weekly time streaming video by 18 per cent, with a year-over-year increase from 143.2 billion streamed minutes to 169.4 billion between February 2021 and February 2022.
The report reveals two other key takeaways: streaming service consumption is expected to grow, with 93 per cent of Americans reporting they will increase their paid streaming services or make no changes to their existing plans over the next year, and over the last three years there was an 18 per cent increase in all available video content.
However, due to a nearly 20 per cent increase in unique program titles over the past three years, nearly half of audiences (46 per cent) feel overwhelmed by the growing number of services and platforms that makes it more difficult to find the content they’re looking for.
Amid the seemingly overwhelming choices provided by new streaming platforms, subscription video on demand (SVOD) now accounts for 53 per cent of minutes streamed. Of the four hours, 49 minutes per day that the average American spends watching content, 1:22 of that is through connected TV (CTV).
In addition to providing streaming consumption trends and consumer sentiment, ‘State of Play’ details how the streaming landscape has broadened beyond traditional SVOD services. Ad-supported VOD, multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) and virtual MVPDs (vMVPDs) have grown to account for 35 per cent. The percentage of homes with YouTube TV—the vMVPD with the highest household penetration—has grown by over 160 per cent since 2020.
The ‘State of Play’ report leverages Nielsen TV measurement and streaming data, insights from Gracenote a Nielsen company, and findings from an online custom survey of the US video streamers.
iWorld
Why Peaky Blinders is one of television’s biggest hits that still deserves more attention
Six seasons, multiple awards and the release of Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man bring the Shelby saga back into the spotlight
In the crowded universe of streaming content, only a handful of shows manage to leave a lasting cultural footprint. Peaky Blinders is overwhelmingly considered one of the biggest global hits of the past decade. Yet many viewers still haven’t fully explored the dark, gripping world of the Shelby family.
Originally produced for the UK’s BBC and later finding a massive global audience through Netflix, the series quietly grew from a British period drama into a worldwide streaming phenomenon.
Created by Steven Knight, the show follows the rise of the Shelby crime family in post-First World War Birmingham. What begins as a gritty street-gang story gradually expands into a sweeping narrative about ambition, politics, power and survival.
At the centre of the saga is Thomas Shelby, portrayed with extraordinary depth by Cillian Murphy. The casting of Murphy is widely regarded as perfect for the role. With piercing eyes, restrained dialogue and an almost hypnotic screen presence, he transforms Shelby into one of the most unforgettable characters in modern screen storytelling.
Murphy’s brilliance lies in his restraint. He rarely shouts or performs theatrically. Instead, a quiet stare, a calculated pause or a subtle shift in expression conveys the emotional storms within the character. Beneath the ruthless gang leader is a war veteran carrying trauma, guilt and loneliness. Murphy captures this complexity with remarkable precision, making Thomas Shelby both terrifying and deeply human.
Beyond its central performance, Peaky Blinders stands out for its unfiltered portrayal of reality. The show does not romanticise crime. Instead, it exposes the harsh social conditions of early 20th-century Britain, from poverty and class struggle to political extremism and the psychological scars left by war.
The series also presents powerful female characters who hold their own within the Shelby empire. Polly Gray, played by Helen McCrory, is the strategic backbone of the family and one of the most formidable figures in the story. Women in the series shape decisions, influence power structures and challenge the rigid social norms of the time.
Across six seasons, the narrative grows dramatically in scale. What begins in the smoky streets of Birmingham evolves into a story involving political conspiracies, fascism and international criminal networks.
The series has also earned significant critical acclaim. It won the BAFTA Television Award for Best Drama Series in 2018 and multiple National Television Awards for Best Drama, cementing its reputation as one of Britain’s most celebrated modern shows.
Another defining feature of the series is its iconic music. The show’s opening theme, Red Right Hand by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, became instantly recognisable and widely associated with the Shelby universe. Combined with a powerful soundtrack featuring artists such as Arctic Monkeys and Radiohead, the music helped shape the show’s dark, stylish identity and became hugely popular among fans.
And the Shelby story is not over yet.
In fact, its legacy is unfolding right now. The long-awaited feature-length continuation, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, was released on March 6, 2026, bringing the Shelby universe from streaming screens to cinemas and giving fans a new chapter in the saga.
For viewers who have not yet stepped into this world, the timing could not be better.
Six gripping seasons are ready to binge on Netflix. A new film has just arrived in theatres. And at the heart of it all stands one of the most magnetic performances in modern drama by Cillian Murphy.
So if Peaky Blinders has been sitting on your watchlist for years, this weekend is your moment.
So, by order of the Peaky fookin’ Blinders, consider this your cue to finally step into the ruthless world of Thomas Shelby. Pour yourself a drink, clear your schedule and press the play button. Because when the Peaky Blinders give an order, you listen.
