Cable TV subscribers down for the first time

in movies on 2014-03-20 09:23 (#3GG)

The Cord Cutting movement , in which people choose to do away with cable TV packages in lieu of entertainment provided over the Internet, seems to be picking up the pace. In 2013, the number of American cable TV subscribers dropped for the first time ever, and by the impressive amount of 105,000. A recent report by the Leichtman Research Group finds that the top nine cable companies lost about 1.8 million video subscribers in 2013 (more than they lost in 2012), while other providers gained some users, for a total (net) loss. 2013 was the first year numbers dropped.

Just a blip on the radar? Or the beginning of something more?

Re: Beginning of something more. (Score: 2, Interesting)

by rocks@pipedot.org on 2014-03-20 18:10 (#Q9)

Live sports keeps me interested in cable subscriptions right now. I might watch 3-4 events a week (football game, basketball game, couple of soccer games, for example). $1/game would take me to $20/month pretty quick, whereas $5/game would take me to $100/month pretty quick. My interest in cable subscriptions falls closer to the $1/game, $20/month valuation which is what I am currently paying. I'm not sure that internet replacements actually compete with this yet. What they do boast are the premium and niche games which may not always make it onto cable channels. I like shows too, but I can live without these so they do not drive my willingness to pay for cable, in general.