S4C’s monthly streaming hours reach new highs as digital-first strategy takes hold

Dating show Amour & Mynydd has proved popular with young viewers

Welsh public broadcaster S4C’s monthly streaming hours have reached their highest level to date, with significant growth across social media, the broadcaster’s annual report reveals.

It comes after S4C announced a five-year strategy dubbed ‘More Than a TV Channel’ in September, which made transforming into a digital-first broadcaster one of its key pillars.

Monthly viewing hours of S4C content on YouTube and VoD platforms S4C Clic and BBC iPlayer have grown by 22% year on year.

Monthly impressions of S4C social media content across Facebook, Instagram and TikTok has increased by 83% to 35.6 million. Meanwhile, monthly engagement across all three social media platforms has increased 47%.

S4C has also expanded its digital viewing among Welsh learners, as the reach of S4C Dysgu Cymraeg social media accounts grew by over 50% during the year, with follower numbers on those accounts more than doubling over the same period. The number of weekly users of the Newyddion S4C news app has also increased.

Among S4C’s content highlights in 2025-26 was Y Cyfweliad, based on Can’t Stop Media’s French format Les Rencontres du Papotin, in which a group of neurodivergent individuals interview various well-known Welsh people. It has been renewed for two further seasons.

Other highlights included the second season of Y Llais, which was one of the few peak-time series on any of the main channels to have more than half its viewers aged under 45.

Meanwhile, clips and social media content from dating show Amour & Mynydd, an original format developed for S4C, reached a young and wide audience, the pubcaster said.

S4C’s sport broadcasts contributed to expanding digital viewing, with sports programming accounting for three of the top five on S4C Clic and seven of S4C’s top 10 on BBC iPlayer.