• The Hollywood Reporter, Monday, August 10, 2009 10:15 AM

Across the board, premium cable channels are feeling the pinch. Starz, Encore, HBO and Showtime are seeing slower subscriber growth or even declines because of user cancellations amid the recession.

Liberty Media says its Starz service saw an average sub gain of 5% in the second quarter compared with the year-ago period, and Encore essentially was flat year-over-year. But compared with the first quarter, Starz lost 3% of its subscribers in the period and Encore was down 1%.

DirecTV notes that demand for premium channels and pay-per-view buys has weakened amid the recession. "We're continuing to see more customers than expected right-size their bills by purchasing fewer premium packages and PPV titles," says Pat Doyle, DirecTV CFO. And like the other cablers, HBO says its subs have slowed in the second quarter compared with the first.

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