70-Plus Percent of U.S. Homes Still Have Pay TV

New data from Leichtman Research Group (LRG) indicates that 71 percent of U.S. TV homes still subscribe to some form of live pay-TV service, down from 82 percent five years ago.

The percentage of U.S. homes taking pay-TV services has continued to slip over the last 15 years, falling from 86 percent in 2006 and 87 percent in 2011 to 71 percent today. The numbers also differ by demo: 77 percent of those 45-plus subscribe to pay TV, as compared with 64 percent of those in the 18 to 44 set.

The report, Pay-TV in the U.S. 2021, also found that 34 percent of non-subscribers have never had pay TV, and 54 percent are aged 18 to 34.

“The percent of U.S. TV households with a live pay-TV service significantly declined from 82 percent to 71 percent over the past five years,” said Bruce Leichtman, the president and principal analyst for LRG. “The penetration of pay TV remains lowest among younger adults and the categories that they tend to populate, including movers and renters.”