• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, April 21, 2023

Free, ad-supported streaming TV channels will generate $6.3 billion in revenue globally this year, and grow to $12 billion by 2027, according to projections by Omdia.

FAST revenue grew almost 20 times between 2019 and 2022, to just under $4 billion.

The U.S. currently accounts for nearly 90% of global FAST market value.

By 2027, U.S. FAST revenue will exceed $10 billion, but U.S. share will decline to 86% as FAST channels outside of the U.S. show the fastest growth, collectively realizing $1.6 billion in revenue.

The UK, Canada, Australia and Germany will see the greatest expansion, with Brazil, Italy, Mexico, France, Spain, and Sweden also in the top 10.

The UK and Canada, which benefit from significant overspill of U.S.-generated content, are projected to have FAST markets worth over $500 million and $300 million, respectively, by 2027.

Germany’s FAST channels are expected to generate just over $200 million in the same year, and Brazil’s are projected at $100 million — representing about half of the estimated $207 billion total Latin American FAST market. Mexico’s revenue is projected at $93 million, which would make it the seventh-largest individual FAST market by 2027.

Despite FASTs’ impressive growth curve, it will lag social video in growth, points out Maria Rua Aguete, senior director at Omdia.

“FAST channels are another window to monetize content, but not the only one,” Aguete says.