Skip to main content

Prime Time Cable Beats Broadcast Nets

It was d�j� vu all over again as Turner chief research officer Jack Wakshlag crunched the year-end television viewership numbers, which when taken in the aggregate tend to support a number of trends that favor cable networks over their broadcast counterparts.

According to Nielsen Media Research data analyzed by Turner�s research arm, ad-supported cable is on track to beat out the broadcast nets in prime time household share for the fourth consecutive year, taking in a projected 55.3 percent share year-to-date through December 4, compared to the seven broadcast nets� 41.5 percent share.

Cable continues to hammer away at the adults 18-34 and 18-49 demographics, ushering in what Wakshlag characterized as �the beginning of a new era.� Compared to 2004, the seven broadcast nets are down an average 8 percent in prime among the 18-34 demographic, with NBC suffering the most attrition (minus 32 percent). Broadcast is also down 4 percent overall among 18-49.

Popular posts from this blog

The Smartphone Market's Premium Pivot

The global smartphone market closed 2025 with a story less about recovery and more about transformation. Premium product, ecosystem lock-in, and manufacturing scale are now the forces shaping competition. For business and technology leaders, the latest IDC market study data confirms that smartphones remain a critical indicator of consumer demand, supply chain health, and AI commercialization at the edge. Smartphone Market Development Global smartphone shipments grew 2.3 percent year-over-year in Q4 2025, reaching 336.3 million units and bringing full-year volumes to 1.26 billion units — a modest 1.9 percent annual increase, according to IDC. This smartphone growth emerged despite a memory shortage crisis, tariff volatility, supply chain disruption, and macroeconomic headwinds. What stabilized demand? Two factors: sustained growth in premium devices and strong foldable momentum, combined with accelerated purchases as consumers bought ahead of anticipated price increases. Buyers weren...