Research firm MoffetNathanson has developed a new quality index for streaming services, and Apple TV beat out Netflix in the very first rankings.

Apple TV trails Disney and HBO Max, but beats all other streamers in new quality index

Engagement is the metric that many streaming services use to measure their success. This focus on “time spent” helps explain why Netflix’s founder once said that the service is competing against sleep.

But since not all types of engagement are created equal, researchers at MoffetNathanson have developed a new “Quality” gauge to judge streamers’ performance.

As explained by Matthew Belloni in his latest Puck newsletter, there are five metrics driving the rankings:

  1. time of day viewership (“primetime being a better indicator of intentionality and attention than, say, the middle of the night”)
  2. content demand, per data services
  3. franchise depth
  4. prestige (awards, critical reception)
  5. sports/live events

Here‘s how each streaming service did in MoffetNathanson’s first rankings:

As the bar chart shows, Disney far outpaces all competitors in the quality index. HBO Max and Apple TV are in a near-tie for second place, with HBO Max just barely outpacing Apple.

Netflix isn’t far behind Apple TV, and it’s followed by a big drop-off before Amazon, Peacock, and Paramount+ round out the list.

9to5Mac’s Take

Because the industry values engagement so much, Apple often ranks near the bottom of comparisons between different streaming services. This new “Quality” gauge, though, shows the streamer succeeding in a key area that matters a lot to viewers.

Apple has always stressed that it wants to create the best content, not the most. While boosting engagement is no doubt a goal internally, hopefully that’s always done with an aim toward keeping quality strong.

What are your takeaways from the streaming service quality index? Let us know in the comments.

Apple TV is available for $12.99 per month, or you can get it discounted through the Apple One bundle.

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