{"id":698,"date":"2021-04-19T00:38:35","date_gmt":"2021-04-19T00:38:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/project.journalism.torontomu.ca\/jrn-305-2021\/?p=698"},"modified":"2021-04-19T00:38:35","modified_gmt":"2021-04-19T00:38:35","slug":"streaming-platforms-usage-rise-during-the-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/project.journalism.torontomu.ca\/jrn-305-2021\/2021\/04\/19\/streaming-platforms-usage-rise-during-the-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Streaming platforms\u2019 usage rise during the pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

 <\/strong>As the COVID-19 pandemic\u2019s restrictions continue, video streaming platforms have become a primary source of entertainment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Over the last year, the number of worldwide subscriptions to these platforms rose to 1.1 billion, according to a report<\/a> by Motion Picture Association. This was a 23 per cent increase from 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Brought to you by Designs.ai<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Prior to the pandemic, first-year hospitality and tourism management student Kinneret Witty wasn\u2019t subscribed to any streaming platform. Now, she uses streaming services almost everyday, consuming content mainly through Netflix and occasionally through Amazon Prime Video.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt the start of the pandemic, I was coming back to Canada from a gap year overseas and had to quarantine by myself in my basement for two weeks,\u201d Witty said. \u201c[These streaming platforms] were pretty much one of the only ways for me to pass my time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Still at her home in Ontario due to the lockdown measures<\/a>, Witty continues to use these platforms when she needs a break from her school work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is a limited amount of things that I can do for a change of scenery so I wind up resorting back to Netflix or other platforms,\u201d Witty said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n