Streaming TV Eclipses Cable Finally Sans Counting Mobile Views

Credit: mohamed_hassan

For years, many have predicted that streaming TV vs cable would eventually result in streaming services supplanting cable as the preferred means of media consumption. It finally happened. According to a recent report by Nielsen, streaming became the top medium for TV viewing in July with a share of 34.8%, dethroning cable (34.4%) and beating broadcast TV (21.6%). This has been a long time coming, given Netflix’s and YouTube’s sustained popularity as well as the arrival of other strong players like Hulu, Amazon, HBO, and Disney.

Among the streaming services, Netflix has the highest viewership share despite losing 970,000 viewers in the second quarter of this year with 8%. Trailing the streaming giant are YouTube (7.3%), Hulu (3.6%), Amazon Prime Video (3%), Disney+ (1.8%), and HBO (1%). This affirms the pulling power of streaming services’ original content as Netflix properties dominated the space, with Stranger Things amassing nearly 18 billion viewing minutes in July along with Umbrella Academy and Virgin River (combined for almost 11 billion minutes).

Up until the second quarter of 2022, cable had maintained a comfortable lead over streaming and broadcast television. By April, streaming viewership reached 30.4% and steadily encroached on cable’s share until it was eventually dethroned in July. And the medium looks to further extend its lead in the coming months.

After all, audiences in July streamed an average of 190.9 billion minutes each week, accounting for the highest volume of streaming per week since the final week of December 2021. Streaming viewership in July also far exceeded that of April 2020, at the onset of COVID-19, which accumulated 169.9 billion minutes per week.

Now that streaming has surpassed cable, will it be able to keep its lead for the long haul to eventually become the dominant form of TV viewing?

The Dominance of Streaming is Inevitable

The Nielsen report only recorded TV viewership, which means desktop and mobile viewing do not count. According to Conviva’s Q1 2022 report, big screens (including TVs) account for 77% of streaming viewership, 11% for mobile, 7% for desktops, and 5% for tablets. Based on recent streaming statistics, while 8 out of 10 viewers watch Netflix on TV, at least 60% of YouTube viewership takes place on mobile.

With a limited viewership share, streaming services were still able to surpass cable and broadcast TV. There is a possibility that streaming has already been dominant even before July 2022. And it would likely become a generally known fact in the near future, given the advantages streaming has over cable.

Streaming is the cheaper option compared to cable. While the subscription fees of basic plans are comparable between the two media, some streaming services are moving toward releasing cheaper ad-supported plans. Besides Netflix, outfits like Disney+, Discovery+, and Peacock either offer these plans or are developing them. Streaming also has superior video quality compared to cable. Moreover, some of the original content on cable are aired on streaming platforms but not the other way around. Most of all, users have the luxury of watching the shows and movies that they want at any given time, which is not possible on cable.

Cable’s only clear advantage is its number and range of programs since cable providers typically offer a wide variety of channels. However, at the end of the day, users prefer having the power of choice in watching content. They would rather mind their popcorn than the schedules of movies and TV programs on various channels. As such, streaming is not only here to stay; it’s here to dominate.