Cord Cutting Levels Off, But There's Damage

The rate of cord cutting has finally begun to level off. But reports Forbes, the damage has been, and continues to be, done.

Since 2014, the number of people who have cut the cord on their cable, satellite or telco subscription (or never had a subscription at all) has more than tripled, going from 15.6 million to a projected 50.4 million this year.

That’s according to a new report from nScreenMedia, which finds that the number of nonsubscribers will rise almost 2 million vs. last year.

The report notes that the rate of cord cutting appears to be evening out. Cable, satellite and telco TV providers dropped 1.6 million subscribers in first quarter of this year, down very slightly from 1.7 million during the same period in 2020.

The number of homes that have traditional pay TV has fallen to 75.6 million, down from 96.9 million just four years earlier. In that time, subscriptions to pay TV have fallen by 22%, reflecting the growing change in the industry that is beginning to play out in corporate decision-making, too.

The report notes that cable lost more subscribers in Q1 of this year than last year, down 1.8%. That's almost double the 1% loss suffered in Q1 2020.

For a while, it seemed cable and satellite companies might find a way to combat pay TV losses by marketing lower-cost streaming packages that gave viewers the same familiar channels for less while still keeping the dollars within the family.

Consumers have lots of low-priced or no-priced content choices to select from, which has made cable, telco and satellite offerings seem increasingly dated.

There's less choice and more hassle with setting up the satellite or getting the cable installed. Instead, you can stream YouTube on your phone for free without scheduling an appointment.

Younger people, especially, are more likely to cut the cord.

They've grown up watching content this way, and they see no reason for channels where things air at ascribed times and show repeats when they can find something new on-demand. And streaming services continue to multiply and grow with much lower price points than traditional pay TV bundles.