Linear Pay-TV Subscriber Losses to Accelerate, Moody's Says

Linear pay-TV operators are running out of time and options in the face of changing technologies and consumer viewing preferences, Moody's said Tuesday. It said higher churn rates and mounting subscriber losses are likely as cable operators and broadcasters deal with shifting demographics, less consumer availability of disposable income and the lack of "appointment" TV beyond expensive sports programming. It said virtual MVPDs are making inroads while the linear pay-TV industry has avoided trying to reinvent the platform, and competitive issues are growing with increased original programming spending by subscription VOD operations and companies like Apple and Facebook planning to commission original content for their video platform. Moody's said "the nail in the coffin" for linear pay-TV will be content companies increasingly going directly to consumers, with subscriber losses likely to be 3 to 4 percent annually in coming years vs. 2 to 3 percent now.