• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, May 10, 2010

Online video leading to mass cord-cutting? Not according to research showing that homes paying for TV service increased again in 2009, nearly passing 100 million.

Separately, cable lost subscribers, while satellite and telco TV operators posted customer increases last year.

The new joint report from SNL Kagan and MediaBiz says 99.9 million U.S. homes received service from a cable, satellite or telco TV operator at the end of 2009 -- up 3% from 97 million in 2008. The digital transition last year may have helped by prompting some people to become subscribers to maintain reception.

Even as the overall pie grew, the report augmented what cable operators have been noting: They are losing video subscribers to competitors. Cable homes fell from 62.6 million in 2008 to 62.1 million, and operators have indicated that the erosion is likely to continue.

Grabbing some of their customers are the growing telco TV entrants -- AT&T U-verse and Verizon FiOS -- which together saw their subscriber base increase 65% to 5.1 million in 2009, according to the report.

Aggressive pricing offers, particularly by Dish Network, may have helped the satellite business grow as Dish and DirecTV posted a combined jump from 31.3 million to 32.7 million homes.

The increase to nearly 100 million comes as the popularity of online video continues to expand. Plus, Hulu and ESPN are offering premium product for free -- at least for now -- that is prompting some fear that people may drop a pay-TV subscription entirely, known as "cord-cutting."

Using Nielsen estimates, about 87% of U.S. homes receive service from a pay-TV provider. But that still means the equivalent of the population of New Jersey and Maryland combined don't receive the signals.

And if top-tier sports events such as the NCAA Final Four and college football title game continue to be removed from free TV, Congress or federal regulators could become involved.

Even as cable operators are losing TV subscribers, they still have the most pay-TV customers in each of the 10 largest markets, according to the Kagan/MediaBiz research. And the concentration of upscale households there offers a substantial runway for upselling and revenue expansion.

In the New York, Philadelphia and Boston markets, the report shows that cable operators hold more than a 70% share in each. The dynamic is different in Los Angeles, the country's second-largest market, where cable is at 52% and satellite is at a robust 38%.

Notably, Dallas could become the first top-10 market where satellite households pass cable homes. In 2009, cable was at 45% of pay-TV homes, but satellite came in at 41%.

Furthermore, Dallas -- which is served by AT&T and Verizon -- has the highest percentage among the top-10 markets of homes getting telco TV service with 14%. New York, where FiOS has made inroads, follows at 13%.

Looking at markets with the highest percentage of homes receiving pay TV, among the top 25, the Orlando, Fla. region has the highest at 97.7%. Neighboring Tampa-St. Petersburg is second at 97.6%. Both are served by cable provider Bright House.

Phoenix, where Cox is the largest cable provider, follows at 96.9%. Indianapolis, led by Comcast, is next at 95.6%. New York rounds out the top 5, with 95% of homes paying for some sort of TV service.

Nationwide, Honolulu has the highest penetration of all homes that get cable at 73%. The Time Warner Cable hub benefits from limited satellite reception there. Providence, a Cox stronghold, is number two, with 72% of homes getting cable service.

Springfield, Mo., the country's 74th-largest market, has the highest percentage of all homes getting satellite service at 51%. The Traverse City, Mich. area follows at 49%.