Research: 16% US Internet homes have cancelled pay-TV and returned
October 14, 2026



Parks Associates’ research The New Live TV Model: Skinny Bundles, Sports, News finds that pay-TV churn does not always represent the permanent loss of a subscriber. The firm’s study of 8,000 US internet households shows 16 per cent of US internet households have cancelled a pay-TV service in the past and later returned, demonstrating new opportunities for providers to win back former subscribers

Pay-TV penetration has stabilised after years of decline, holding in the low-to-mid 50 per cent range among US internet households and now at 57 per cent of all households. At the same time, SVoD adoption now exceeds 90 per cent, and the average subscription TV household subscribes to more than six video services across pay-TV and SVoD.


“Consumers are managing these larger streaming portfolios without materially increasing their overall entertainment spending, creating intense competition for wallet share,” commented Michael Goodman, Director, Entertainment Research, Parks Associates. “Consumers still value live sports, news, and events, but they increasingly reject the traditional large-channel bundle.”

Parks Associates research shows that among returning pay-TV households, 40 per cent returned within six months, and 29% returned after more than a year. Live sports are particularly important in bringing subscribers back.

37 per cent of returning pay-TV subscribers cite access to live sports as a reason for subscribing.
Among returning subscribers, 29 per cent cite access to local news or live TV as the reason.
“The research also shows that the longer consumers remain away from pay-TV, the more likely they are to choose a vMVPD when they return,” Goodman said. “This behavior is changing the competitive environment, and providers like YouTube TV, DirecTV Stream, and Charter (Spectrum) are responding with different approaches to packaging.”