informitv: Top U.S. Pay-TV Providers Shed 358,000 Subs in Q2

The top 10 service providers in the U.S. lost more than 358,000 TV subscribers between them in the second quarter of 2018, according to the latest informitv Multiscreen Index.

Cable companies among the top 10 lost 233,000 television customers, compared to 244,000 the previous quarter. Satellite TV providers DIRECTV and DISH Network lost 478,000 subscribers between them, compared to 373,000 the previous quarter. Online services DIRECTV NOW and Sling TV gained 325,000 and 41,000 subscribers, respectively.

The top 10 services lost 0.43 percent of their combined subscriber base in the quarter, marking an improvement on the same quarter the previous year, when the top 10 lost 792,000 subscribers, or 0.91 percent of their base.

The top 10 services for the U.S. in the Multiscreen Index now have 83.56 million TV customers between them, accounting for slightly less than 70 percent of television homes.

“Satellite television services lost more subscribers than were gained by their corresponding online alternatives,” said Dr. William Cooper, the editor of the informitv Multiscreen Index. “Cable companies slightly reduced their rate of loss but the market is marked by slow attrition rather than a dramatic decline.”