Cable TV Will be Replaced by Streaming

It is reported that the American media companies are gradually reached a consensus about the future of the cable TV. They estimate that in the next five years, about 25 million American households will cancel their cable subscriptions. Since 2012, 25 million households have canceled their cable subscriptions. However, people familiar with the matter said privately that at least three major media companies are still expecting cable TV subscriptions to stabilize at around 50 million.

The decrease in cable subscriptions means that for America's major media companies, revenues will drop by about $25 billion (including related advertising losses). These include Disney, Comcast's NBC Universal, AT&T's Warner Media, ViacomCBS, Fox, Discovery, Sinclair and AMC Networks. This expectation has led to a structural change in the media industry. In the past three months, Disney, NBC Universal, Warner Media and Viacom have all announced major restructurings. They replaced old leadership, integrated related departments, laid off tens of thousands of employees and shifted to focus on streaming video.

American audiences can now choose among mainstream media streaming services. These streaming services include Disney+, Warner Media's HBO Max, NBC Universal's Peacock, ViacomCBS's Paramount+, Discovery+ and AMC+, with prices ranging from free to $15 per month. Many streaming services were launched last year, while others will be launched in early 2021.

The major media companies' plan is simple: they hope enough people will sign up for streaming services to make up for the lost cable TV subscribers.

However, streaming media services may not be able to save the decline in US media companies' revenue.