Top Pay TV Services Experience Largest Quarterly Loss Ever

FierceVideo’s analysis of 2018’s third quarter shows a massive subscriber loss for traditional pay TV providers. Cable, direct broadcast satellite (DBS) and Telcos experienced a combined loss of 1.2 million video subscribers in 3Q 2018, ending the quarter at 91.0 million.

According to Media analyst group, MoffetNathanson, it is the “largest quarterly loss ever,” with cord cutting gaining more traction.

Additional findings:

• Cable operators lost nearly 1.1 million subs year-to-date, their worst performance at the three-quarter mark since 2014.
• Traditional telco subscriptions fell by 94,000. Verizon alone lost a net 63,000 subs.
• DBS had its worst quarter on record with a loss of 726,000 subscribers.
• Virtual platforms such as Sling TV, DirecTV Now, Hulu with Live TV, YouTube TV and PlayStation Vue gained an estimated 2.1 million subscriptions, contributing to the decline in traditional pay TV subscriptions.

Click here to view how the top 7 U.S. publicly traded pay TV operators performed in Q3 in video.