Top Pay TV Operators Lost Nearly 1.9 Million Customers in Q1

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Cord cutting was roughly flat with the horrific losses experienced in the first quarter of 2020

Cord cutting
(Image credit: Future)

The top 13 operators in the U.S. pay TV ecosystem collectively shed over 1.895 million subscribers in the first quarter, just slightly less than the 2.065 million customers that went missing in Q1 2020, according to data published by Leichtman Research Group.

The only real improvement, if you choose to call it that, occurred at AT&T, where the telco lost 620,000 across its various satellite, traditional QAM and IP pay TV platforms, vs. nearly 1,100 in the first quarter of last year. 

But cord cutting got worse for Comcast, where Q1 losses were up 20% to 491,000, and virtual platform Hulu + Live TV, which lost 200,000 customers in the quarter vs. a gain of 100,000 in Q1 2020. 

A LRG-supplied chart detailing the entire Q1 cord-cutting picture follows further down on this cluttered page. 

Leichtman Research Group

(Image credit: Leichtman Research Group)
Daniel Frankel
Daniel Frankel

Daniel Frankel is the managing editor of Next TV, an internet publishing vertical focused on the business of video streaming. A Los Angeles-based writer and editor who has covered the media and technology industries for more than two decades, Daniel has worked on staff for publications including E! Online, Electronic Media, Mediaweek, Variety, paidContent and GigaOm. You can start living a healthier life with greater wealth and prosperity by following Daniel on Twitter today!