Leichtman Research Group Inc. reported that cable lost 500,000 basic subscribers in the second and third quarters of 2002, while EchoStar Communications Corp. and DirecTV Inc. added more than 1 million.
What's more, the two direct-broadcast satellite companies had to add 2.7 million new subscribers to reach 1 million additions because 1.7 million subscribers left the services.
In a survey of 1,250 homes, LRG found that 69 percent of DBS subscribers who have had DBS for less than one year switched from cable.
Some 32 percent of current cable subscribers have looked at getting DBS, and 10 percent said they are likely to cancel service in the next six months. At the same time, 15 percent of DBS subscribers said they were likely to cancel service in the next six months.
