“Cord cutting” in the U.S. was fast and furious in Q1 — so much so that multichannel subscriptions experienced their largest-ever first quarter decline. That’s according to fresh data from Kagan Media Service, which notes, “At 2 million, it was both the biggest absolute and relative quarterly drop to-date.”
According to Radio+TV Business Report, fresh data from the media research group within S&P Global Market Intelligence estimates it also was the first quarterly decline for virtual multichannel alternatives, such as Dish’s SlingTV and AT&T TV NOW.
As determined by Kagan, broadband-delivered services collectively lost 261,000 subs, a 2.8% decline, to finish the quarter with 9.2 million subs.
Gains from Hulu with Live TV and YouTube TV were erased by the declines from Sling TV and AT&T TV Now — as well as Sony’s decision to shutter PlayStation Vue in January.
It matches other research studies that paint a bleak picture for MVPDs, with the COVID-19 pandemic only serving as lighter fluid on an industry that’s been aflame in lost customers for months. Indeed, the rough start to 2020 underpins Kagan’s updated forecast for video market share in the U.S. The revised outlook found that mounting unemployment and the COVID-19 economic downturn only added to the already pervasive cord cutting forces. “This fueled revised expectations for online-only households to surpass combined traditional and virtual multichannel subscribers in the projections,” Kagan says.
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