Primacy and Indispensability: 2 Metrics Essential to Understanding Subscriber Loyalty and Churn

The churn conversation needs a new lens. For years, industry conversations about subscriber loyalty and churn in streaming have focused on one side of the equation: the behavior of subscribers. How likely are they to leave a service? What causes them to stay? At Magid, we’ve contributed to that conversation with tools that model churn risk and predict subscriber behavior across segments.

But in a media environment that’s more fragmented and competitive than ever, there’s a critical counterpart to consider: the churnability of the platform itself. In other words, how easily can a subscriber imagine giving up your service?

Not all platforms are created equal in the eyes of the consumer. Some are essential. Some are disposable. The difference? Emotional connection, perceived value, and primacy in the viewer’s content-seeking habits. In our latest video, Mike Bloxham, a leading expert in media and consumer research at Magid, guides us through these important insights.

Watch the video » Exploring SubScape with Mike Bloxham

Measuring What Really Matters

Through SubScape®, we track a number of key metrics that help our clients understand how they’re perceived and how vulnerable they are to churn. Two metrics in particular help paint a clearer picture:

• Indispensability: How likely is a subscriber to cancel your service relative to others?
• Primacy: Where do you fall in the consumer’s hierarchy of go-to platforms?

The answers aren’t always what you’d expect.

Take a look at this chart from SubScape® data showing major streamers plotted by their indispensability and primacy scores.

Netflix dominates, of course, sitting far above the competition on both metrics. So much so, in fact, that we removed it from the second chart to better visualize the spread among the rest of the field.

What becomes clear in that zoomed-in view is that success doesn’t require a Netflix-sized content library. It requires strategic positioning.

Niche Can Be Mighty

Among the giants (Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, Max), two smaller players shine. Crunchyroll and BritBox.

These niche platforms serve focused audiences with laser precision—anime fans and lovers of British television, respectively. And while they don’t compete on volume, they do dominate when it comes to indispensability.

Why? Because they serve underserved audiences with a high level of consistency, passion, and specificity. Subscribers feel like they can’t get this content anywhere else. And that’s the heart of brand stickiness.

The Perception Gap: It’s Not Just About Usage

One key insight from SubScape® is the difference between actual and perceived content usage. A subscriber might watch more shows on a generalist platform, but if they perceive themselves as only engaging with one or two titles, they’re more likely to cancel.

Compare that with a niche platform where a user sees real value in a smaller, more focused library. When content feels uniquely tailored, it becomes harder to give up. Even if it’s not the most watched service in their household.

What This Means for Streamers

Whether you’re a major player or a niche service, the takeaway is the same. Being perceived as indispensable is more powerful than being everything to everyone.

Platforms that succeed in the years ahead will be those that:

• -Understand their audience deeply.
• -Serve that audience consistently and distinctively.
• -Measure not just viewership, but emotional connection and perceived value.

If you’re relying solely on traditional engagement metrics to evaluate risk, you’re missing the nuance that drives real retention. SubScape® helps bridge that gap by quantifying indispensability and primacy, offering an inside look at how viewers prioritize platforms. And why. 

Want to understand how indispensable you are to your subscribers? Let’s Talk »