Online video services reached almost 45% of total television usage in the United States in May, which for the first time was more than broadcast and pay television combined. YouTube was the most viewed online video source, with an eighth of all viewing.
According to the Nielsen Gauge, streaming accounted for a record 44.8% of total television viewing in the United States in May, up from 38.8% a year before, while broadcast channels made up 20.1% and cable or subscription channels made up 24.1%.
For the first time, total streaming accounted for more viewing than traditional television, although it was still under half of viewing, with the remaining 10.9% being games, discs, and other uncounted sources.
Although the lead may shift back to traditional television in the new broadcast season, it looks like a major turning point to online viewing that is likely to become permanent soon.
However, it is not as simple as people watching Netflix instead of traditional television. Netflix still only accounts for 7.5% of total television viewing in the United States. That is more than any single broadcast network, but behind the portfolios of the leading three distributors, Disney, Paramount, and NBC Universal.
It is four years since the launch of The Gauge in May 2021, providing a basic benchmark of how people spend time watching television.
Since then, online viewing has grown by 71% and broadcast and cable viewing have declined by 21% and 39% respectively.
“It’s fitting that this inflection point coincides with the four-year anniversary of Nielsen’s The Gauge, which has become the gold standard for streaming TV measurement,” said Karthik Rao, the chief executive of Nielsen. “It’s also a credit to media companies, who have deftly adapted their programming strategies to meet their viewers where they are watching TV — whether it’s on streaming or linear platforms.”
YouTube, not including the YouTube TV multichannel subscription platform, represented 12.5% of all television viewing in the United States in May, up from 9.7% a year before, its fourth consecutive monthly share increase.
Netflix at 7.5% was followed by Disney with 5.0%, Amazon Prime Video at 3.5% and Roku Channel at 2.5%, with Paramount at 2.2%, Tubi at 2.2%, Warner Bros. Discovery at 1.5%, and Peacock at 1.4%. Other streaming services with less than a 1% share made up 6.5%.