Americans are continuing to flee from their cable and satellite services in droves, with traditional pay TV providers heading towards a record number of quarterly subscriber losses, according to a new report from analysts at MoffettNathanson on Monday.
So far this earnings season, Comcast, AT&T (DirecTV’s parent company) and Charter have combined to lose 1.25 million Q2 subscribers — or about 1.1 million more customers than during the same period last year. This “bloodshed,” as analyst Michael Nathanson put it, puts pay TV subscriber losses on track for a record 5.5% drop during Q2; and even factoring in virtual MVPD options like Sling TV and DirecTV Now, pay TV is expected to see subscribers decline 2.7%