New Zealand remains its high ranking in terms of subscription services adoption, with four out of five Kiwis signed up to at least one service.

According to a research by Zuora, New Zealand ranks fifth, just ahead of Australia. China has the highest percentage of subscribers (89 per cent), followed by Spain, Italy and the Netherlands.

“Five years ago, less than 60 per cent of New Zealanders said they subscribed to a service,” said Marc Gagne, GM at Zuora ANZ. “The fact that this figure is now at 80 per cent shows that a very major shift has taken place.

“But we’ve known for some time that New Zealand is a few steps ahead when it comes to the subscription economy. That was borne out in the 2018 survey and has been reinforced by this one.”

Explaining reasons for the growth, Gagne said domestic businesses have been leading the way in the sector. Besides convenience, Kiwis also tend to have fewer physical items as service reliability, variety, exclusivity and sustainability become much more significant.

According to the survey, 81 per cent of New Zealanders believe that people will subscribe to more services in the future and own fewer physical items. Popular subscription options include TV and movies on-demand, music streaming services and grocery delivery.

Zuora interviewed more than 13,600 participants from the UK, the US, Germany, Japan, Singapore, China, Italy, France, Spain, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Australia. More than 1000 New Zealand adults participated.