Linear Drops to Below 50 Percent of U.S. Viewing

Streaming hit another new high in the U.S. this July, reaching 38.7 percent of TV usage, according to Nielsen’s The Gauge, while linear dropped below 50 percent for the first time.

The Gauge offers a snapshot of total broadcast, cable and streaming consumption on television. In July, broadcast and cable both hit new lows, of 20 percent and 29.6 percent, respectively, for a total linear share of 49.6 percent. Streaming rose 2.9 percent from June to July and was up 25.3 percent from this time last year.

In streaming, YouTube, Netflix and Prime Video each recorded new highs in July. YouTube (not including YouTube TV) viewing increased by 5.6 percent on the previous month to capture a 9.2 percent share of total TV usage. Netflix was up 4.2 percent to score 8.5 percent of TV usage. Prime Video hit 3.4 percent, seeing a 5 percent month-on-month gain.

Hulu scored a 3.6 percent share of TV usage in the month, with Disney+ at 2 percent. Max and Tubi each scored 1.4 percent, with Peacock and Roku Channel at 1.1 percent and Paramount+ at 1 percent. Pluto TV was just behind its sister SVOD service at 0.9 percent.

A key finding from Nielsen this July is that acquired content, not originals, drove streaming viewership, with Suits (Netflix and Peacock) and Bluey (Disney+) ranking as the most-watched streaming programs, combining for 23 billion viewing minutes. Suits alone was nearly 18 billion—the same number garnered by Stranger Things on Netflix last summer.

In broadcast, which was down 3.6 percent, dramas remained the top genre (25.7 percent), but the leading programs were ABC World News Tonight and the MLB All Star Game on FOX. Cable viewing fell almost 3 percent, with the top shows being ESPN’s Home Run Derby and College World Series, followed by When Calls The Heart on Hallmark Channel.