BRISTOL, UK, 06/05/26: New data from Digital i reveals that U.S. streaming subscribers are increasingly committed to finishing new series.
View-through rates - the average percentage of a season viewed by the audience - for the most-watched content reached a three-year high in 2025, driven by significant gains in viewer retention on Disney+.
Digital i analysed the view-through rates (VTR) of the top 100 most-watched season one titles that launched on Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max and Prime Video in the U.S. between January 2023 and December 2025.
The analysis measured debut seasons that contained a minimum of six episodes and a maximum of 15 episodes and recorded VTR for the first six months of release.
Disney+ VTR leaps eight percent
Digital i recorded a clear upward trend in how successfully the four measured streamers - Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max and Prime Video - are hooking their U.S. subscribers. In 2025, viewers of those services watched an average of 54.3% of season one of a new title, up from 52.6% in 2023.
While this increase may seem minor, in a market as large as the U.S. and incorporating four SVOD services, this represents millions of subscribers watching more episodes of new series than they would have previously.
Disney+ was the primary driver of this growth, with the average season one VTR for U.S. Disney+ subscribers rising from 49.1% in 2023 to 57.3% in 2025. The Star Wars franchise was a big draw for the service, with viewers watching 82.4% of the first season of Tales of the Empire and 82.2% of The Acolyte, while Zombies: The Re-Animated Series Shorts took third place with 78.6%.
HBO Max experienced a modest rise from 51.1% to 54.2%, with 24 in 24: Last Chef Standing achieving the highest average VTR of 85.7%, while IT: Welcome to Derry and Creature Commandos were tied with an average VTR of 75.5%.
Netflix also saw an average increase from 54.1% to 56.5% in that same period. Viewers of Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story watching 84.1% of its first season, while The Perfect Couple and The Night Agent were also big titles for audience retention, with viewers watching 79.0% and 78.8% of their first seasons, respectively.
In contrast, Prime Video was the only service among the four to see a decline, with its average view-through rate dipping from 50.1% in 2023 to 46.1% in 2025. Nevertheless, the average Marie Antoinette viewer watched 87.5% of the first season, followed by Wilderness with 76.0% and, on average, viewers of Fallout watched 75.2% of the first season.
As a streaming service that is bundled with a retail subscription, Prime Video has a much higher number of passive subscribers than other SVODs.
This means that hit shows can reach high numbers of subscribers, while average engagement per user is lower due to the number that are inactive or infrequent viewers of Prime Video.
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ABOUT DIGITAL I
Digital i is a global streaming media measurement company that tracks subscriber engagement and content consumption through privacy-compliant, opt-in panels and proprietary data capture technology. Offering deep insights into what, where, when, why, and how viewers watch, Digital i empowers major streamers and studios to understand audiences like never before.
Founded in 2003, the company started out as a linear analytics firm and has since expanded to measure streaming audiences in more than 20 countries.
Digital i’s clients include streamers, broadcasters and media brands, who use viewing data analytics to negotiate better deals, compete on a global level, and find their niche in an ever-changing market.
Mark Layton
Communications Lead
mark.layton@digital-i.com
