Cord cutting quickened to “an unprecedented pace” in the United States during the first quarter of 2017, according to the latest IDC report.
‘US Consumer Multiplay and Broadband Services’ found that Comcast was the only major operator able to grow subscribers. The top seven pay-TV operators (AT&T, Comcast, Charter, Dish Network, Verizon, Cox and Altice USA) lost 487,000 video customers in the quarter, the worst first quarter ever for the industry.
“The first quarter is usually a seasonally strong one for pay-TV. It wasn’t this year,” said MoffettNathanson analyst Craig Moffett.
“With most of the data now in, early returns suggest a litany of worst-evers. It was the worst ever first quarter sub loss, at an estimated 762K subscribers; over five times as many as last year’s loss of 141,000.
“It leaves the pay -TV subscriber universe shrinking at its worst ever annual rate of decline (-2.4 per cent). And it was the worst ever acceleration in the rate of decline (60 basis points).”
