Streaming Usage Hits New High in the U.S.

Streaming continues to outpace broadcast and cable usage in the U.S., taking a 36.9 percent share of viewing time in September, per Nielsen.

Streaming hit a new high despite gains in broadcast TV viewing amid the kickoff of the fall TV season and the return of sports. Overall TV viewing was up 2.4 percent in September, according to Nielsen’s The Gauge. Sports viewing alone rose 222 percent on broadcast TV, taking a 25.1 percent share.

Broadcast saw the largest month-on-month gain to 24.2 percent, led by sports, but usage of the medium is still 7.1 percent lower than it was a year ago. Cable, which also benefited from sports, saw its share of viewing fall to 33.8 percent, the lowest ever reported by The Gauge. This was down 9.3 percent from last September.

In streaming, YouTube scored a record 8 percent share, with Netflix at 7.3 percent, Hulu at 3.8 percent, Prime Video at 2.9 percent, Disney+ at 1.9 percent and HBO Max at 1.3 percent. The AVOD service Pluto TV captured 1 percent of total TV.

“The return of football was the true spark in September, as it provided new content across broadcast, cable and streaming,” Nielsen said. “But even without sports, streaming—in all of its forms—continues to gain adoption, and it benefits from the emphasis that pure-play streamers and media companies alike are placing on it.”