Research: US sheds 5m pay-TV subs in 2023
March 11, 2024
Leichtman Research Group (LRG) reports that the largest pay-TV providers in the US – representing about 96 per cet of the market – lost about 5,035,000 net video subscribers in 2023, compared to a pro forma net loss of about 4,590,000 in 2022.
The top pay-TV providers now account for about 71.3 million subscribers – with the top seven cable companies having about 34.1 million video subscribers, other traditional pay-TV services having 21 million subscribers, and the top Internet-delivered (vMVPD) pay-TV services (including estimates for YouTube TV) having 16.2 million subscribers.
Key findings for the year include:
- Top cable providers had a net loss of about 3,825,000 video subscribers in 2023 – compared to a loss of about 3,540,000 subscribers in 2022
- Other traditional pay-TV services had a net loss of about 3,105,000 subscribers in 2023 – compared to a loss of about 2,720,000 subscribers in 2022
- Top vMVPDs added about 1,895,000 subscribers in 2023 – compared to a gain of about 1,670,000 subscribers in 2022
- Traditional pay-TV services (not including vMVPD) had a net loss of about 6,930,000 subscribers in 2023 – compared to a net loss of about 6,260,000 in 2022
“The top pay-TV providers had a net loss of about 5 million subscribers in 2023, compared to a pro forma loss of about 4.6 million subscribers in 2022,” said Bruce Leichtman, president and principal analyst for LRG. “At the end of 2023, top pay-TV providers had about 71.3 million subscribers, down from 91.5 million at the end of 2018.”