Top Cablers Drop 3% Of TV Subscribers

So-called “cord-cutting” or “cord-shaving” has dinged some big cable networks over the last four years.

According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, the top 40 biggest cable networks -- in terms of penetration of U.S. TV homes -- have dropped 3% average or 3.2 million TV subscribers since 2010.

These networks include ESPN, TNT, Nickelodeon and USA Network.

The report says low-priced, smaller basic cable network plans for subscribers have contributed to the dip in results. Those smaller network plans are now 12% of all pay-TV subscription, up 8% to 10% from a few years ago.

A report earlier this year from Experian Marketing Services said some 6.5% of U.S. homes in 2013 -- 7.6 million homes -- are cord-cutters, up from 4.5% -- or 5.1 million homes -- in 2010.

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Experian defines cord-cutting as homes that have high-speed Internet but no cable or satellite television service. According to Nielsen’s 2014 estimates, there are 115.6 million U.S. TV homes and 294 million TV viewers age 2 and older.

The report said adults under the age of 35 are twice as likely not to have a pay TV service -- 12.4% of those homes where an adult under the age of 35 lives are cord-cutters.
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