The cable TV industry is crossing a milestone: Only half of American households subscribe anymore.

"You know that the cable TV industry is in steep decline. You know it because of all the evidence around you. And you know it because we tell you about it over and over. Still, sometimes you see a stat that helps put it all into even sharper perspective. Like this: Fifteen years ago, nearly 9 in 10 US households had a pay TV subscription. By the end of 2025, that number will be down to five out of 10."

"That estimate comes from Madison and Wall, the technology/media advisory firm. CEO Brian Wieser also helpfully shows what those stats - which include traditional pay TV providers like Comcast, and digital ones like YouTubeTV - look like in chart form: Madison and Wall (That 50.2% number is for Q3 of this year; Wieser thinks that should get down to 50% or lower by the end of December.)"

"Again, this is not news for people who invest in or operate media companies. It explains, for instance, why everyone from Comcast to Warner Bros. Discovery to A&E is trying to sell, spin off, or otherwise ditch most of their cable TV assets. (Larry and David Ellison's Paramount, meanwhile, insists that it won't spin off its cable channels, even while it acknowledges that " each quarter is accelerating decline.")"

Pay TV subscriptions in the US have fallen sharply over the past decade, dropping from nearly 9 in 10 households fifteen years ago to roughly five in 10 by the end of 2025, per Madison and Wall. The 50.2% figure corresponds to Q3 and is expected to reach 50% or lower by December. The decline encompasses both traditional cable providers and digital pay TV services like YouTubeTV. Major media companies are pursuing sales, spinoffs, or divestitures of cable assets. Linear TV still delivers high reach and holds much inventory, but advertisers can now attain comparable or greater reach via streaming and digital video.

Read at Business Insider