First landlines, now TV and DVDs

no tvFor the past several years, telcos have looked on in horror as their cell phone owning subscribers - particularly younger ones - decided landlines are purely optional. Inevitably consumers are making the same shift with their television and DVD viewing habits.

No one has the exact figures, but it's estimated some 1.1 percent of US households are TV-free, some one percent of the market. Certainly the current economic climate isn't helping as consumers look for ways to pare down their monthly expenses. Electricity may be mandatory - but cable, satellite and daily newspaper delivery? You can get all that stuff free online.

As viewers shift to YouTube, Hulu, and streaming services offered by television networks, not to mention streaming video provided by the leading online DVD rental companies such as Netflix, global entertainment conglomerates such as Disney and Time Warner are seeing an impact to their bottom lines that will likely last well beyond the current economic climate.

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Posted 10 February 2009 15:22pm by Rebecca Lieb with 0 comments