eMarketer predicts that there will be nearly 70 million broadband households in the US in 2008 -- "Convergence, once only a futuristic dream, is a growing reality in homes across the continent, and it is changing the character � product offerings and competitive alignment � of some of the most powerful corporations in North America. The broadband market is no longer about only high-speed Internet access, says Ben Macklin, eMarketer Senior Analyst and author of the report. A new market is being created, including voice and video � a market worth nearly ten times the value of the Internet access business alone."
The global streaming industry has spent the better part of a decade chasing subscriber counts as the primary metric of success. That era is now formally over. New market data from Omdia confirms that the industry has crossed a decisive threshold; one that shifts the competitive playing field from growth-at-all-costs to monetization discipline. For senior executives navigating media, advertising, and technology strategy, the implications extend well beyond entertainment. A Historic Revenue Crossover Online video revenue increased 13.5 percent to $176 billion in 2025, while pay-TV revenue declined 4 percent to $170 billion; marking the first time in the industry's history that streaming has surpassed legacy pay-TV in revenue terms. This is not a rounding error or a statistical artifact; it represents the culmination of more than a decade of structural disruption to the traditional broadcast and cable TV model. Global subscriptions to online video services reached 2.24 billion by the ...