The competition for viewers in December led to losses of viewing share across broadcast, cable and streaming. The “other” category benefited, gaining 2 share points, driven in part by video game usage during holiday vacations and the gift-giving season. Within the streaming category, Peacock became the latest service to achieve a 1% share of TV usage, crossing the threshold to be broken out from the “other streaming” category.
Nielsen
In another story on the India game streaming and TVs market, we touched on the notion that TVs are now a subscriber-based product, even though they are not sold as such. When you look at the acceleration in streaming adoption, the cable companies become ISPs more than anything else, at least in regions where there is infrastructure and competition for broadband delivery.
If 5G fulfills its promise and we get a big jump in wireless broadband delivery, the role of cable and satellite becomes muted. Now, the TV is the set-top box and the centerpiece of the home entertainment experience. So, really, how far are we from the point when TVs become a subscriber-based business?
