Research: US pay-TV subs decline continues
May 18, 2022
Findings from Leichtman Research Group suggest that the largest pay-TV providers in the US – representing some 93 per cent of the market – lost about 1,955,000 net video subscribers in Q1 2022, compared to a pro forma net loss of 1,910,000 in Q1 2021, and 1,960,000 in Q1 2020.
The top pay-TV providers now account for about 74.1 million subscribers – with the top seven cable companies having about 40.5 million video subscribers, other traditional pay-TV services having 26.2 million subscribers, and the top publicly reporting Internet-delivered (vMVPD) pay-TV services having about 7.4 million subscribers.
Key findings for the quarter include:
- Top cable providers had a net loss of about 825,000 video subscribers in Q1 2022 – compared to a loss of about 780,000 subscribers in Q1 2021
- Other traditional pay-TV services had a net loss of about 625,000 subscribers in Q1 2022 – compared to a loss of about 865,000 subscribers in Q1 2021
- Top publicly-reporting vMVPDs had a net loss of about 505,000 subscribers in Q1 2022 – compared to a loss of about 265,000 subscribers in Q1 2021
“Pay-TV net losses of about 1.95 million in Q1 2022 were similar to the net losses in the first quarters of 2021 and 2020,” advises Bruce Leichtman, president and principal analyst for Leichtman Research Group. “Over the past year, top pay-TV providers had a net loss of 4,735,000 subscribers, similar to a loss of about 4,820,000 over the prior year.”