US pay TV subs are cord-shaving
March 23, 2012
The evidence is mounting that even though cable TV customers are not cutting the cord en masse, they are cutting back. Research from Altman Vilandrie & Co, suggests that about 20 per cent of consumers now shave pay TV services, spending progressively less on their packages as more of what they want to watch becomes available online.
About 31 per cent of consumers age 18 to 24 have shaved from their cable TV services, the report said. Also, more than 40 per cent of the cable TV viewers in that age group said they no long watch TV at its appointed time, because of the flexibility offered by online TV viewing.
Meanwhile, the most rapid growth in cable TV shavers actually occurred in a higher age bracket, with the number of cord shavers between the ages of 35 and 44 rising 9 per cent last year to about 28 per cent.
The same research found that less than 4 per cent of consumers have completely cut the cord on cable TV, far fewer than a Deloitte report suggested in January, but in line with several other reports on the trend. Still, about 20 per cent of pay TV customers under the age of 44 told Altman Vilandrie that they have “seriously considered” cutting the cord.