Streaming has exceeded the combined share of broadcasting and cable television for the first time, according to a new Nielsen report.
Streaming represented 44.8% of the total number of television viewers in May, its most important share to date, while the combination of broadcasting, with 20.1%, and cable, with 24.1%, represented 44.2% of the visualization of television, according to the Monthly Report report in Nielsen.
Compared to this time four years ago, when Nielsen began his monthly reports, streaming has skyrocketed by 71%, while the diffusion and visualization of cables decreased by 21%and 39%respectively, according to Nielsen.
“While many expected this milestone happening earlier, sporting events, news and content of the new season have kept the broadcasting and surprisingly resilient cable,” said Brian Fuhrer, Vice-President Director of Product Strategy and Nielsen Light leadership.
The share of streaming has increased regularly in gauge reports since 2021, compared to Broadcast and the share of the visualization of cable television.
Fuhrer said that the growth of streaming has been motivated by three main factors: free advertising streaming television offers, also known as fast channels; The rise of Youtube; And trips to media companies inherited to reach consumers focused on streaming.
In May 2021, only five streaming platforms exceeded 1% of total TV visualization, based on Nielsen data. Since the most recent gauge report, 11 streaming platforms have now reached this threshold.
These platforms include fast TV, Roku Channel and Tubi channels. Nielsen notes that these free channels have become more and more popular and that free services have been a major growth engine. Combined, these three channels represented 5.7% of total TV visualization in May, more than any individual diffusion network.
Another free option – YouTube – has become streaming champion in the past four years. The main division of Youtube, excluding Youtube TV, has climbed 120% since 2021. In May, YouTube represented 12.5% of all visualizations of television, the highest share of all streams to date and its fourth consecutive monthly increase.
The rise of YouTube has been well documented over the years, because it has become a chief competitor of the audience. Over time, traditional media companies have not been able to ignore the success of Youtube and, in many cases, have adopted it. For example, the original content that Disney produces for YouTube completes its long content on Disney + and leads to a more in -depth commitment with its characters, according to a Disney spokesperson.
The continuous transformation of traditional media societies into streaming entities was another important trend, according to Fuhrer. Nielsen noted that platforms such as Hulu, Paramount + and Peacock have moved to the complement, rather than competing with linear television. The Super Bowl Lix was successfully broadcast on Fox and Tubi, for example, and the 2024 Olympic Games could be seen on NBC and its streaming platform, Peacock.
Recent restructuring announcements for major media companies can cause changes in the future. Discovery Warner Bros. announced on June 9 that it will separate into two companies: a streaming and studios company and a global network company. Comcast announced that it would turn most of its NBCUniversal network portfolio, including CNBC, including CNBC.
Netflix has become the clear winner among the paying subscription services, according to Nielsen. The media company has seen a vision gain of 27% in the past four years and has been the main subscription supplier in the total use of television during this period.
Nielsen said that if the milestone cannot be repeated in a coherent way every month, especially since the football season starts later in the year, it predicts that streaming will finally become the number 1 permanently.
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of Nbcuniversal, owner of CNBC. Square would become the new parent company of CNBC as part of the proposed spin-off.