NPD Group recently issued a report noting that subscribers to premium channels like HBO and Showtime were declining while subscriptions to SVOD (subscription video on demand) services like Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) and Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) Instant Video were growing. Although the premium channels reportedly disputed those findings, and NPD later clarified its study by saying that subscribers are either subscribing to more premium channels or adding more channels over time, it's clear that content providers are guarding their brands and that online video is becoming a huge threat to over-the-air and pay-TV services. Commentary.