MVPDs Lost 7.2M Subs in '20 Despite Shelter-at-Home Orders, Says Kagan

MVPDs lost 7.2 million subscribers last year, reported Kagan Monday, saying virtual MVPD services “blunted the overall erosion” of consumers with a package of live linear channels, but the 2.7 million new vMVPD subscribers fell far short of offsetting cable, telco and satellite cancellations. MVPD losses slowed in Q4 to 1.5 million, but the full-year decline “underscored that the impacts of the pandemic amplified cord cutting instead of insulating an industry built around home entertainment.” For Q4, the vMVPD segment didn’t hold its momentum, gaining 223,000 subscribers to finish the year with 12.5 million. Some 6.8 million households cut the cord last year, said analyst Tony Lenoir. Fewer than 67% of U.S. households have a traditional pay-TV or vMVPD service with a package of live, linear channels, Kagan said, and fewer than 57% subscribe to traditional pay TV.