Divide Deepens Between Cable and Broadband Subscribers

As the reports of VOD services gaining subscribers rush in, a new report from Leichtman Research should worry the traditional lot much. Cable networks in US reported higher number of high-speed internet customers than TV subscribers. The top cable brass that claims a 95% stake in the market reported a joint addition of nearly 790,000 broadband subscribers in Q1 2015 and lost out on 145,000 video subscribers in Q3, which would make it a loss of 48.8 million total TV subscribers.

The trend is now becoming clear that the divide is deepening as cable TV subscribers are increasingly giving up their cable packages to adopt VOD services. The highlights of the report are :

• Cable companies lost only 145,000 video subscribers in Q3 2015 compared to 440,000 subscribers in Q3 2014 and about 600,000 subscribers in Q3 2013.
• Top cable companies continue to sport strong year-over-year growth in terms of broadband subscribers, at about 134% YoY increase in net broadband additions.
• Satellite TV companies including AT&T’s DirecTV and Dish Network gained 3,000 pay-TV subscribers in Q3 which is encouraging compared to a loss of 40,000 subscribers over the same period last year.

Source : Business Insider