The Cable Business Is Finally, Really Getting Killed By The Internet

pay tv table

After years of premature declarations of the death of pay TV, it looks like it’s actually starting to happen.

In the last twelve months pay TV — cable, satellite, and fiber — lost 80,000 subscribers, according to Leichtman Research Group, via Janko Roettgers at GigaOm. This is the first time the pay TV business lost subscribers like this.

Bruce Leichtman, head of Leichtman Research, attributes some of the losses to Internet video services.

“First-time ever annual industry-wide losses reflect a combination of a saturated market, an increased focus from providers on acquiring higher-value subscribers, and some consumers opting for a lower-cost mixture of over-the-air TV, Netflix and other over-the-top viewing options.”

Roettgers says this is particularly noteworthy because Leichtman has been a cord-cutting skeptic.

While cable isn’t going to suddenly drop dead, it sure looks like Netflix, Amazon, and broadcast TV are providing a solid alternative to paying ~$ 60 a month for cable television.

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