Households across the country are continuing to buy into streaming services. On average, Americans have five streaming services and pay nearly $50 per month, according to Cord Cutters News. In 2021, the global streaming market was valued at almost $60 billion, according to Grand View Research.
But now, streaming services face an uncertain future. Netflix for example, announced the loss of 200,000 subscribers so far this year and expects to lose another two million subscribers this quarter.
Elon professor of Cinema and Television Arts Max Negin does freelance media creation. Despite some of the negative news around streaming services this week, Negin said he still thinks it is the future.
“It's the natural thing that no one can stay on top forever,” Negin said. “You can't, there's not a limitless number of people who are going to subscribe to your service. So, it makes sense that they're going to have a downward moment in their history. But it's also just one company.”
Negin also said the job market is simply unpredictable.
“Unfortunately, when I talk to students who graduate and look for jobs, in some cases, it's 100 applications to find a one job or 200, or 300,” Negin said. “The success rate is not hitting at [getting] 50% of jobs. Especially if you're looking to get hired cold. So, having a connection, having someone you know, who refers you to accompany, those are the things that make your path a lot easier.”
Elon University alumna Alex Roat ‘20 works at Discovery Plus in Tennessee. While at Elon, she was a director for newscasts at Elon News Network. Roat said companies like hers are looking for people under the age of 25 because that’s the target audience for streaming services.
“Being young and wanting to sort of enter the streaming world is definitely an advantage, but I think it's also extremely difficult,” Roat said. “Just because the reality of this is that there are a lot of things that are shifting.”
One of those shifts is hiring college students to reach more consumers. Junior Miracle Smythe was a campus brand manager for HBO Max last semester.
She said working with HBO was a good way to make connections within the company. After completing her Cinema and Television Arts degree at Elon, her hope is to work at HBO Max post-graduation.
And with over 50% of streaming service users are under 35 — paving the way for what Roat and Smythe see as growth of the industry’s future.
“I really want to go into development and production as far as like seeing what shows get greenlit to put on air or streaming services,” Smythe said. “I definitely think it helped me find an emphasis and knowing the trades.”