The percentage of U.S. broadband households that use digital antennas in their homes increased to 20% near the end of 2017, up from 16% in early 2015, according to Parks Associates.
"Increasingly, consumers are cobbling together their own bundles of content sources. Digital antennas are experiencing a resurgence as consumers consider over-the-air TV and OTT video services as alternatives to pay TV," said Brett Sappington, senior director of research at Parks Associates, in a statement. "The percentage of 'Never' households (households that have never subscribed to pay-TV services) has held steady, and the percentage of households actually cutting the cord has increased between 2015 and 2017. Antennas are an affordable source for local channels to these households."
Parks said the main reasons for more consumers ditching big cable/satellite TV bundles are the high cost and lower perceived value.
RELATED: Pay-TV price the overwhelming top factor in cord cutting, TiVo says
There’s an apparent correlation between Parks Associates’ new research and a recent TiVo on pay-TV subscribers, which indicates price is the prime factor driving most cord-cutters.
“Pay-TV subscriptions have dropped each year since 2014, falling to 81% of U.S. broadband households in Q3 2016,” said Sappington.
Elsewhere in Parks’ latest 360 View: Access and Entertainment Services in U.S. Broadband Households report it’s revealed 17% of consumers who cancel their pay-TV service would have stayed with their provider if there were no monthly fees for their set-top boxes. In addition, 63% of subscribers who cannot currently restart programs from the beginning want that feature.