Subscriptions Weekly | Oct 30 - Nov 5, 2022

Are you a subscriptions enthusiast? You’re not alone! Welcome to Subscriptions Weekly. In this edition, we review the latest earning reports from global brands, discuss Twitter Blue’s updates, and share how subscription companies can prepare for the end-of-2022-start-of-2023 season.?

The Q3 aftermath: the winners, the losers, and the surprises

Subscription brands continue to release their Q3 reports, showing interesting results in earnings and losses for global entertainment and media brands.

• New York Times: The company has registered a 4.9% boost in earnings, logged more growth in digital subscribers, and raised its full-year profit outlook. Despite the industrywide slowdown in digital advertising, NYT’s revenue grew 8% year-over-year. Read more on SeekingAlpha.?
• Paramount+: Across Paramount’s direct-to-consumer (DTC) streaming services, the company reached nearly 67 million global consumers–a 3.3 million jump since last quarter. However, despite subscriber growth, Paramount’s overall revenue of $6.92 billion missed the estimated $7.03 billion mark. Learn more on TechCrunch.
• Warner Bros. Discovery: WBD’s subscriptions rose to nearly 95 million combined global customers across HBO, HBO Max, and Discovery+. However, the brand reported a $2.3 billion net loss due to pre-tax amortization from acquisition-related intangible assets and restructuring. Keep reading on Variety.
• Play Station Plus: Sony has revealed that PlayStation Plus lost nearly 2 million subscribers after its relaunch in June. However, despite this decline, its network services revenue, which includes PS Plus subscription revenue, increased by 10%–presumably by users signing up for higher tiers. Learn more on Polygon.?

What is going on with Twitter Blue??

It’s been a busy week at the Twitter headquarters. Elon Musk plans to revamp the Twitter Blue premium subscription–which has only seen $6.4 million in worldwide consumer spending. After announcing a spike in plan pricing from $4.99 to $19.99 monthly, Musk decided to settle for a more accessible $8/month price adjusted to purchasing power parity of the country, hinting toward a global launch. Continue reading on TechCrunch.

Churn & acquisition insights: How can you recession-proof your business?

Subscription brands can’t predict the future, but they can prepare for it. Year after year, marketing and growth leaders across every industry want to know the latest churn rate and acquisition benchmarks and how these numbers impact the trajectory of the subscription industry.

With over a decade of helping 2,200+ global brands grow, we’ve created two benchmark chapters on churn rate and acquisition to help you draft your 2023 strategies and goal-setting. This analysis breaks down 2022 trends, their impact on the industry, and the overall impact of Recurly on our customers' results.

Subscription brands are getting ready for 2023

With the shift from ownership to access comes increased competition and subscriber expectations. How can brands hit their 2023 goals?

We’ve sat down with Jason Clampet , Skift ’s Chief Product Officer & Co-founder, Laura Mason , On ’s Digital Product Manager; Robin Zucker , Codecademy ’s Chief Marketing Officer; and Lauren Chadwick , Zype ’s Senior Vice President of Marketing, to discuss:?

• What the future subscriber wants
• The state of the industry and the latest market research
• How to optimize internal operations to drive subscriber growth

Watch on-demand now and get all the insights you need to start 2023 on the right foot.?

However, if you’re still making the last tweaks to your holiday strategy, we highly recommend considering git subscriptions. Nearly 70% of consumers this year want to give and receive subscriptions. You’re still on time to boost gift cards and plans for the end-of-year festivities!?

Join Recurly at these exciting events:?

• Let’s meet at Subscription Show next week. Defeat growth blockers and find better ways to accelerate revenue potential. We’ll discuss it over a coffee; book your time .?
• Let’s have breakfast at our London Office. Join us next November 17 for an intimate conversation with Greg Jenkins , ecommerce and product strategy lead at Findmypast , and learn effective strategies for global expansion. Save your spot.

From the Recurly blog:

• Maximizing growth with subscription customer acquisition
• The five must-dos to master subscription customer acquisition
• Member journey 101: Optimize your subscriber experience
• Boost your sign-ups: No credit card for free subscription trials

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