Led by YouTube, Streaming Eclipses Cable and Broadcast for First Time With 44.8% of TV Viewing

Streaming has officially outpaced cable and broadcast’s combined share of total TV usage, per Nielsen’s latest Gauge report, posting a record 44.8% share of viewership in May — a 71% increase over the last four years.

In comparison, broadcast and cable posted shares of 20.1% and 24.1% for the month, respectively, down 21% and 39% over the same four-year period.

“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,” Nielsen CEO Karthik Rao said in a statement. “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, which remains the industry leader for the fourth consecutive month with a record share of 12.5% in May, has increased its viewership over 120% since 2021. Meanwhile, Netflix, whose viewership has climbed 27% since 2021, finished May with a share of 7.5%, landing it in the second place spot.

Taking third place was Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ with an aggregate share of 5%, followed by Prime Video with 3.5%, The Roku Channel with 2.5%, Paramount+ and Pluto TV with an aggregate share of 2.2%, Tubi with 2.2%, Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max and Discovery+ with an aggregate share of 1.5% and Peacock with 1.4%.

While streaming exceeding traditional TV viewership is expected to continue in the near future, Nielsen emphasized that it is “almost certainly” not permanent.

“This trend could continue into the summer months, but the balance will likely shift back — at least temporarily — as football kicks off and a new broadcast season returns,” the firm said.

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