UPDATE: An earlier version of this post stated an incorrect percentage for the increase in broadband homes without video services.
The number of U.S. homes with broadband service but lacking a pay-TV subscription spiked from about 1.1 million in October 2013 to 2.8 million at the end of third quarter.
The not-so-cheery news comes via Nielsen, which also found that consumption of live TV in Q3 dropped 4.4 percent year-over-year to just four hours and 32 minutes per day on average, as U.S. viewers continue to migrate to on-demand platforms.
Rebranding its quarterly "Cross Platform Report" into what it now calls its "Total Audience Report," Nielsen found that metrics for non-linear platforms were--not surprisingly--all way up.
Usage of subscription video on demand platforms like Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) was up 19 percent, with SVOD services now infiltrated into 40 percent of U.S. TV homes. Time spent using smart phones was up to one hour and 33 minutes a day compared to one hour and 10 minutes a year ago.
DVR usage, meanwhile, crept up to 30 minutes a day from 28 minutes.
Meanwhile, among the flurry of disruption-oriented news released Wednesday, Bernstein Research released data showing linear TV viewing by children during the week of Nov. 17-23--typically a big, cold-weather, holiday-oriented viewing period for kids--was down 12 percent.
For more:
- read this Nielsen report
- read this Variety story
- read this Broadcasting & Cable story
- read this story from TheStreet
Related links:
Nielsen to begin measuring Netflix and Amazon viewership
Authenticated ad viewing up 368%, FreeWheel says
Juenger: SVOD leading cause of 4 percent fall TV ratings drop