REPORTER: YOU KNOW THE SOUND. IT’S TIME TO BINGE THE LATEST SEASON OF YOUR FAVORITE TV SHOW, OR WATCH THE HOTTEST NEW MOVIE. STREAMING SERVICES LIKE NETFLIX, HBO MAX, AND HULU PROVIDE CONSUMERS WITH THOUSANDS OF CONTENT AVAILABLE TO STREAM.
MICHAEL SPENCER: “I only purchased streaming services. When I moved to Syracuse, I think I shifted away from cable about two years ago, but just the convenience of not having to like tune in at specific times.
REPORTER: TWENTY THREE YEAR OLD GRADUATE STUDENT MICHAEL SPENCER IS A PART OF THIS YOUNGER GENERATION THAT HAS OPTED FOR THE PRICE OF STREAMING OVER THE PRICE OF CABLE.
MICHAEL SPENCER: “I feel like my schedule just really wasn’t conducive to that. And with cable, I know there’s like DVR and stuff, but realistically, as a college student, I just don’t have time to like pay for an extra package to then go check when things are gonna be on, so all streaming.”
REPORTER: AND SPENCER IS NOT ALONE, HE’S PART OF A GENERATION OF CONSUMERS THAT HAVE DECIDED TO CUT THE CORD FROM CABLE COMPANIES. ACCORDING TO FORBES, CORD-CUTTING HAS LEFT THE CABLE INDUSTRY AT ITS LOWEST IN DECADES, WITH ONLY TWO THIRDS OF US HOUSEHOLDS STILL SUBSCRIBING TO CABLE TELEVISION.
REPORTER: STREAMING SERVICES HAVE A POSED A MUCH CHEAPER OPTION FOR ENTERTAINMENT FROM HOME. DIRECTOR OF THE BLEIER CENTER FOR TV AND POP CULTURE, ROBERT THOMPSON, SAYS THAT CABLE TV REQUIRES MORE MONEY AND EFFORT THAN STREAMING.
ROBERT THOMPSON: “Cable requires infrastructure that streaming doesn’t. So I think a lot of younger generation people are still growing up in homes that may not have cut the cord yet. But as soon as they leave most people in their apartments, their dorms wherever their first place is, tend to be streaming.”
REPORTER: BELIEVE IT OR NOT, YOUNG PEOPLE AREN’T THE ONLY ONES WHO HAVE DECIDED TO CUT THE OFTEN PRICEY COSTS OF CABLE TV… OLDER GENERATIONS HAVE DECIDED TO HEAD ON OVER TO STREAMING SERVICES AS WELL.
DONNA MORGANS: “I had cable for years…”
REPORTER: DONNA MORGANS WAS LOOKING FOR A WAY TO SAVE MONEY AFTER RETIREMENT.
DONNA MORGANS: “So I’m like, ‘what can I cut back on?’ And so that was frankly, one of the first things I canceled – was my cable television.”
REPORTER: SO YOU MAY THINK, IF CONSUMERS CONTINUE TO SWITCH FROM CABLE TO STREAMING, WILL CABLE COMPANIES CONTINUE TO MAKE MONEY? THE ANSWER IS YES, SINCE SO MANY COMPANIES OFFER NOT ONLY CABLE BUT INTERNET PACKAGES AS WELL.
DONNA MORGANS: “Well, I don’t have a subscription to any of those things, I find everything literally free. All I have to pay for is my internet.”
REPORTER: AND CABLE STILL HAS BENEFITS THAT CONSUMERS MAY NOT BE ABLE TO FIND ANYWHERE ELSE.
ROBERT THOMPSON SOT: “I think cable will be the same partially because cable is bundled for many people with their internet service. And that means there’s a reason to keep that coaxial connection going. But if we want to look in the, you know, future in any distant kind of way, streaming, or whatever the modern, higher tech version of it seems to me the most likely way that most people will be getting their television.”
REPORTER: ACCORDING TO CNBC THERE IS AN EXPECTATION THAT 25 MILLION U.S HOUSEHOLDS WILL CANCEL THEIR PAY TV SUBSCRIPTIONS OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS. SO WE MAY SEE A CONTINUED DOMINATION OF STREAMING SERVICES FOR YEARS TO COME. FOR N-C-C NEWS’, I’M IMANI CLEMENT.
SYRACUSE, NY (NCC NEWS)– Gone are the days where consumers needed a cable box or satellite dish to view all of their favorite television programs.
Streaming services are now eliminating the need for traditional cable TV subscriptions.
Services like Netflix, HBO MAX, and Hulu all provide consumers with tens of thousands of content that is easily available to stream.
Twenty-three-year-old graduate student Michael Spencer says that he drifted from cable television not much long ago.
“I only purchased streaming services. When I moved to Syracuse, I think I shifted away from cable about two years ago,” Spencer said.
Spencer is a part of a younger generation that has opted for the price and efficiency of streaming over the price and efficiency of cable.
“I feel like my schedule just really wasn’t conducive to that. and with cable, I know there’s like DVR and stuff, but realistically, as a college student, I just don’t have time to pay for an extra package to then go check when things are gonna be on,” Spencer said.
Spencer is not alone, as he is part of a generation of consumers that have decided to cut the cord from cable companies.
According to Forbes, cord-cutting has left the cable industry at its lowest in decades, with only two thirds of US households still subscribing to cable television.
Streaming services have posed a much cheaper option for entertainment from home. Director of the Bleier Center for TV and Pop Culture, Robert Thompson, says that cable TV requires more money and effort than streaming.
“Cable requires infrastructure that streaming doesn’t. So I think a lot of younger generation people are still growing up in homes that may not have cut the cord yet. but as soon as they leave most people in their apartments, their dorms, wherever their first place is, tend to be streaming,” Thompson said.
Believe it or not, young people are not the only ones who have decided to cut the often pricey costs of cable TV – older generations have decided to head on over to streaming services as well.
Former teacher Donna Morgans really wanted to find a way to save money after her retirement. She decided there was really only one thing to eliminate in order to cut back on spending.
“So I’m like, ‘what can I cut back on? And so that was frankly, one of the first things I canceled – was my cable television.”
Many may think that if consumers continue to switch from cable to streaming, cable companies may not continue to make money. It is actually the opposite, since so many companies offer not only cable but internet packages as well.
Thompson says that cable still has benefits that consumers may not be able to find anywhere else.
“I think cable will be the same partially because cable is bundled for many people with their internet service. And that means there’s a reason to keep that coaxial connection going. but if we want to look in the, you know, future in any distant kind of way, streaming, or whatever the modern, higher tech version of it seems to me the most likely way that most people will be getting their television,” Thompson said.
According to CNBC there is an expectation that 25 million U.S households will cancel their pay TV subscriptions over the next five years. So consumers and corporations may see a continued domination of streaming services for years to come.
