Observed Signal · Aug 21, 2026 · Study / Market Research · Source: Retail-News · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Positive
Joyn Narrows Gap with RTL+ in German Streaming
YouGov BrandIndex long-term data show that German streaming services Joyn and RTL+ have increased their relevance among German viewers between 2021 and 2025. Joyn closed much of the gap with RTL+ on the YouGov 'Consideration' metric, rising from 10.9% (2021) to 18.7% (2025), while RTL+ moved from 12.2% to 19.1%. Joyn also significantly improved its price‑for‑value perception (Value‑Net‑Score), whereas RTL+ saw a decline. The shift is especially pronounced among Generation Z, where Joyn reaches 24.8% consideration versus RTL+ at 26.0%.
YouGov BrandIndex data indicate national German streaming platforms (Joyn, RTL+) are gaining consideration and changing price‑per‑value perceptions, which affects available advertising inventory and audience targeting—notable for advertisers targeting younger audiences but not industry‑shifting.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Joyn increased its average Consideration (consumers who would consider using the service) from 10.9% in 2021 to 18.7% in 2025 (YouGov BrandIndex).
- RTL+ increased its Consideration from 12.2% in 2021 to 19.1% in 2025, remaining slightly ahead of Joyn.
- Joyn's Value‑Net‑Score (price‑for‑value perception) rose from 2.2 in 2021 to 6.0 in 2025.
- RTL+'s Value‑Net‑Score fell from a positive 1.2 in 2022 to -0.8 in 2025.
- Among Generation Z, Joyn's Consideration is 24.8% and RTL+'s Consideration is 26.0%.
Connected Companies & Entities
6 Entities mapped“Joyn increased its average Consideration value from 10.9% in 2021 to 18.7% in 2025....”
“RTL+ improved from 12.2% to 19.1% in the same period and thus remains narrowly ahead of Joyn....”
“This is shown by recent long‑term data from the YouGov BrandIndex....”
“The RTL+ offering is supplemented, among other things, by content from cooperations with Warner Bros. Discovery and HBO Max....”
“Article published by Retail-News (published on 21 August 2026)....”
“Promotional context in the article: 'Now discover it on Amazon' (affiliate/link to book)....”
Ontology Mapping & Concepts
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Joyn Surges with 8.3 Million Users in February
Joyn reports strong February performance with 8.3 million users, setting a Reichweitenrekord for the second consecutive month and a 9.1% rise versus January, while watchtime grew by 17%. The platform emphasizes a free-content model and positions itself as a content and channel aggregator with around 70 live TV channels, over 150 topic channels, and more than five years of on-demand programming. Key content strategy highlights include Joyn Originals such as the strategy reality show The Power and Frier & 50 with Anette Frier, along with the ProSieben series The Cooking Academy and popular formats like Germany’s Next Topmodel, Promis unter Palmen, Reality Backpackers, Die Landarztpraxis, and Navy CIS. Joyn has expanded FAST channels and introduced On-Demand channels for advertisers, with Otto as the first client and brands like Apple, Lego, Liebherr, and Melitta featuring products via QR codes linking to Otto. The ad-tech stack includes an Advanced-TV portfolio, Total Video based on Cflight, cross-device technology from Virtual Minds, Yieldlab on SSP, and broad DSP integration, plus targeting capabilities and frequency control.
State of Streaming Adds Joyn Profile
Joyn is a German streaming app (founded 2019) backed by ProSiebenSat.1, headquartered in Munich. The platform operates free ad-supported and premium streaming offerings, providing live TV, original series, and on-demand content. The State of Streaming directory lists Joyn as an international free ad-supported service and links to its website (joyn.de). The page is a company directory/profile entry and does not report news or recent developments about Joyn.
Amazon Tops ARD and ZDF in Streaming Hours
AGF Videoforschung published convergent measurement data and platform usage figures for July 2026, making cross-platform streaming volumes comparable. By hours streamed, Prime Video led with about 124.2 million hours in July, followed by the ARD Mediathek (≈104.3M) and the ZDF streaming portal (≈96.1M). Among commercial services, RTL+ (≈55.6M hours) outpaced Joyn (≈38.8M hours), though Joyn had a higher cumulative monthly reach. AGF also reported audience metrics for the 14–49 demographic, where Prime Video again led (≈81.0M hours). The dataset covers 01.07.2026–31.07.2026 and is published by AGF (package number: 18188, 21.08.2026). The figures highlight differences between total viewing time (engagement) and net reach (unique viewers).
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