More streaming, less ... not streaming

Reports continue to show the growth of streaming, and the decline of traditional TV viewing, such as cable or satellite.

A report from the Wall Street Journal (there may be a paywall, so I'll quote some key points) indicates that streaming is the top way people are watching TV.

The report broke out TV viewing into four categories:

• Cable TV (which I'm assuming includes satellite)
• Broadcast TV (which indicates over the air antenna)
• Streaming (that explains itself)
• Other (DVDs, games, etc.)

The report shows streaming with the largest share of the viewing.

What does this mean? Well, streaming is growing. We knew that. Cable TV is dropping. We knew that. So did we learn anything? Well, yes. We learned that the trend continues. This appears to be a long term thing.

The report also says that the cable companies have noticed:

The milestone is the latest sign of the rapid erosion of the cable-TV bundle, which has lost about a quarter of its subscribers over the past decade, as more Americans cut the cord in favor of streaming services like Netflix, Google’s YouTube and Disney’s Hulu.

Cable television accounted for 29.6% of total U.S. viewing time in July, while broadcast attracted 20%, Nielsen said in a release published Tuesday. Streaming services, meanwhile, captured 38.7% of Americans’ viewing time, while a category labeled “Other”—which Nielsen says includes usage such as DVD playback and gaming—accounted for the remaining 11.6%.

The growth of streaming platforms at the expense of cable and broadcast TV networks has accelerated in recent years, as most entertainment conglomerates introduced their own direct-to-consumer services to take on industry leader Netflix. As they sought to rapidly grow their subscriber bases, many of them chose to make their highest-profile and costliest content available exclusively on streaming.

I've been streaming for over a dozen years. I don't need cable. I can do without antenna (though I kinda like it).

It does not indicate that people are simply using streaming versions of cable -- YouTube TV, Sling TV, Fubo, Vidgo, DirecTV streaming, etc. -- although there's nothing to indicate otherwise. The report focuses on non-linear streaming such as Netflix, Peacock, Apple TV+, Prime Video, and other such services. That's good news, in that it shows people are realizing that linear services such as YouTube TV, Sling TV, and the like, which are simply streaming cable services, are not necessary.

I have nothing against those services. However, I don't like cable, whether in tradition form or disguised as streaming.

My Streaming Life has saved me a lot of money, although I did have to learn a new way of watching TV. But it's cheaper, and I have a huge selection of content. I'm happy.