Video streaming services can sell through partners such as mobile networks, broadband providers and banks while still selling direct. What a bundle does for a streaming service depends on four decisions it makes with each partner: which tier it goes in, what it can see and do with bundled viewers, what the commercial terms are and how results are measured.
Viewers who come and go and a flat UK market make direct growth harder
Picture a viewer who signs up for a streaming service to watch one series, cancels when it ends, then does the same with another service the following month. For a service that depends on direct sign-ups, that viewer has to be won again and again.
Viewers like that make up a large group. Subscription analytics firm Antenna found that by the end of September 2024, people who had canceled premium streaming services three or more times in two years made up 23% of subscribers in the category, and accounted for 41% of new sign-ups in the first nine months of that year.
Keeping viewers is one challenge, and finding new households to subscribe is another. In its 2026 Media Nations report, Ofcom found that the share of UK households with a streaming subscription had leveled off at 70%. UK subscription revenue for pay TV and streaming still grew in 2025, and Ofcom put that down to price increases and bundled offerings.
Streaming bundles can run alongside direct-to-consumer sign-ups
Bundles give streaming services a second way to reach viewers. Analysts at Omdia expect selling direct to stay the main streaming business model but for bundles (through phone, broadband and pay TV providers) to play a growing part.
Direct sign-ups reach viewers who are already looking for you. A bundle puts you in front of a partner’s customers, whether or not they were looking. Our guide to subscription bundling examples by category shows where else streaming has been bundled, including premium bank cards.
What a bundle does for you then comes down to four decisions you make with each partner.
The tier you put in a streaming bundle shapes its price and the path to upgrade
The first decision is which version of your service goes into the bundle. Ad-supported tiers have become a large part of how people sign up. In the UK, Worldpanel by Numerator found that 43% of new paid streaming subscriptions in the last quarter of 2025 were ad-supported, up from 37% a year earlier.
An ad-supported tier has a lower retail price, which can make it easier for a partner to include, although what the partner pays you depends on the terms you agree. You may also be able to offer customers who join on that tier the option to upgrade to your ad-free plan, depending on your agreement with the partner. Including the premium tier can make the bundle more attractive, but leaves fewer customers with a reason to upgrade.
Agree what you can see and do with bundled viewers before launch
The second decision is about the viewer. Often the partner handles billing, while the viewer signs in to your service to watch. So you need to agree three things with the partner up front:
- whether you can tell which viewers came through the bundle
- what you can learn about how they watch
- whether you can contact them (for example, to offer a way to stay if the bundle ends)
Asking viewers to create an account with you answers the first question. Sending them marketing emails or messages is a separate step. In most markets, you’ll need their permission first, and the rules on how you ask for it vary from country to country.
The moment a viewer switches on their bundled service can be your first direct contact with them. Our guide to embedded distribution explains more, so agree with the partner what can happen at that point.
Set the commercial terms, then measure what the bundle really earns
The third decision is the deal itself. It has two parts:
- how you’re paid (a fixed fee per subscriber, a share of the revenue, or both)
- what the viewer gets (included in their plan, or free or discounted for a while before they pay)
Agree both parts at the same time, as each affects the other. Together, they decide what you earn from each bundled viewer and how quickly that pays back what it cost to win them.
Watch out for viewers who already pay you direct and switch to the bundle. You might earn less from them, without gaining a new subscriber.
That’s why the fourth decision, how you measure results, needs to look past sign-ups. Compare bundled and direct viewers on how much they watch, how long they stay and what each group earns you once costs are taken out.
A streaming bundle earns its place when it reaches viewers on terms you can sustain
The viewer at the start of this guide, who joined for one series and left, may still leave however they subscribe.
A bundle gives you another way to reach viewers like that, plus others you might not reach on your own. It’s worth running alongside direct sign-ups when the terms work for you over time, and the results show those viewers are worth what they cost to win.
FAQs
What is subscription bundling for streaming?
It’s when a partner, such as a mobile network, broadband provider or bank, offers a streaming service to its own customers, for example included in a plan or as a perk. The streaming service keeps selling direct too. It agrees with the partner which tier is included and how viewers activate it.
Should a streaming service bundle or sell direct?
It doesn’t have to choose. Omdia’s analysts expect direct sign-ups to stay the main route for streaming services, with partner bundles growing as a support. Selling direct suits viewers who already know what they want, and a bundle reaches people through a partner they already use, so each route has its own job.
Which tier should go into a streaming bundle?
It depends on what you want the bundle to achieve. An ad-supported tier has a lower retail price and can open the way to an ad-free upgrade, if the partner arrangement allows it. A premium tier can make the offer more appealing, with less room to upgrade later. What the partner pays depends on the terms in either case.
Who owns the viewer relationship in a streaming bundle?
It’s shared, and the split is agreed with the partner. The partner may handle billing while the viewer signs in to the streaming service to watch. Whether the service can recognize bundled viewers, see how they watch and send them marketing depends on how activation is set up, the rules that apply and the permissions it has.
How does bundling fit an OTT business model?
An OTT (over-the-top) service delivers video over the internet. Bundling adds partner distribution to a direct subscription model without replacing it. Its value is easier to judge when the terms are agreed deliberately and bundled subscribers are compared with direct ones on the same measures.
Key takeaways
- Video streaming services can add partner bundles to direct sign-ups and keep both routes.
- Viewers who come and go, and household numbers that have leveled off, make a second route worth considering.
- What a bundle does for you depends on four decisions: the tier you include, what you can see and do with bundled viewers, the commercial terms and how you measure results.
- Judge a bundle on whether its terms are sustainable and how bundled viewers compare with direct ones on use, how long they stay and what they earn you.
