Nearly one in three internet users across the European Union held a paid streaming subscription in 2025, according to Eurostat figures. Adoption rates vary sharply by member state, with Ireland and Denmark leading at over 60 percent, while Bulgaria recorded the lowest uptake in the bloc at 9.3 percent.
Eurostat Data Reveals a Stark Geographical Divide in European Streaming Adoption
Binge-watching weekend drama series and streaming live sports have become a standard fixture for millions of European households, but willingness to pay for digital entertainment splits sharply across national borders. New data from Eurostat shows that 32.7% of internet users across the bloc held a paid streaming subscription in 2025.
Subscription services are notably popular in northern and western European households, whereas parts of Eastern Europe trail significantly behind. When breaking down the adoption rates by member state, Ireland and Denmark lead the rankings by a wide margin. In Ireland, 63.9% of internet users pay for video and sports services such as Amazon Prime and Disney+, closely followed by Denmark at 61.1% and the Netherlands at 59.2%.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, financial commitment to streaming drops off steeply. Bulgaria recorded the lowest adoption rate in the European Union at just 9.3%. Slovenia follows at 13.7%, with Latvia at 16.7% and Lithuania at 17.4%, illustrating a deep digital subscription divide across the continent.
Audio, News, and Gaming Subscriptions Trail Behind Audiovisual Entertainment
While video streaming commands the largest share of digital wallets, alternative subscription sectors capture much smaller audiences across the European Union. Audio platforms covering music streaming and podcasts on applications like Spotify and YouTube Premium account for 23.0% of EU internet users as paying subscribers.
Traditional digital reads, including online news websites, digital newspapers, and magazines, lag far behind at 7.2%. Meanwhile, interactive cloud gaming subscriptions such as Xbox Game Pass sit at the bottom of the paid subscription market, drawing just 6.1% of internet users.
Legal Challenges Mount Against Streaming Price Increases Across Europe
Even as subscription services maintain high popularity in countries like Ireland and Denmark, they face growing resistance from consumers and legal authorities over rising costs. A Dutch consumer group has launched a lawsuit against Netflix over subscription price increases of up to 75% implemented since 2017, estimating potential damages at up to €673 million.
This litigation follows similar regulatory and judicial pushback across Europe. A court in Rome ruled in April that Netflix price increases in Italy were illegal, a decision the streaming platform is currently appealing. Parallel legal battles in Germany have resulted in various courts ruling in favor of consumers, while an ongoing case in Spain proceeds through the courts and a legal dispute in Austria concluded with an out-of-court compensation settlement.
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