Cable TV earnings came out late last week and temporarily put to rest cord-cutting theories. Sure ‘the kids’ watch clips of their favorite pregnant teenage vampire diary shows on YouTube, but it turns out most people are still watching TV on their TVs and paying for subscription fees to the Time Warners and Comcasts of the world. The industry giants still see declining numbers when it comes to analog subscriptions, but those only make up 25 percent of their business and generally account for lower-paying customers. In other words, people who have fallen on hard times are ditching their subscriptions to save money, not because they have fancy new computers with a bazillion streaming options.
As the New York Times notes, Netflix also played a key role: “Netflix and services like it are increasingly being positioned as supplements, not replacements, for traditional TV subscriptions as the major studios, networks and distributors work to preserve their existing business models.” And, the 800,000 subscribers that Netflix lost last quarter are going to be way more hesitant when it comes to pulling the plug on their cable subscription.
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