• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, May 17, 2021

Pay-TV revenues are dropping globally, and the U.S. is leading the trend, according to a Digital TV Research forecast.

Pay-TV revenues across 138 countries peaked in 2016 at $201 billion.

They fell to $173 billion in 2020, and with 77 countries seeing declines, will decrease to $143 billion by 2026 — despite an increase of 15 million in the number of pay-TV subscribers during the 2020 to 2026 period.

U.S. pay-TV revenues peaked at $104 billion in 2015.

The U.S. will see the most dramatic decline among all countries analyzed — dropping by $23 billion, from $80 billion to $57 billion, between 2020 and 2026.

By 2026, the U.S.’s share of global pay-TV revenues will be 40%, down from 52% in 2015.

Global satellite TV revenues will decline by $16 billion, with digital cable down $12 billion.

Analog cable will lose another $2 billion, but IPTV losses will be comparatively minor.