Streaming platforms have led Nielsen’s Gauge rankings of TV use for most of the monthly snapshot’s four-year existence. It had yet to eclipse the combined total usage for cable and broadcast outlets, though — emphasis on had.
The Gauge for May shows that streaming captured 44.8 percent of viewing time in the United States for May, beating the combined tally of 44.2 percent for cable (24.1 percent) and broadcast (20.1 percent). Other TV use (gaming, physical media playback, some on-demand viewing) made up the remainder.
YouTube and Netflix, the two biggest streamers, accounted for 20 percent of all TV use, nearly beating the broadcast total by themselves.
The milestone for streaming services coincides with the four-year anniversary of Nielsen’s first Gauge data release in May 2021. At that time, streaming totaled 26 percent of all TV use, to 39 percent for cable and 25 percent for broadcast.
“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.”
In the four years since the first Gauge, streaming’s share of TV use has grown by some 71 percent, while cable has fallen by 39 percent and broadcast by 21 percent. Other TV use has remained fairly steady over the past few years, fluctuating by a few tenths of a point month to month but generally in the 10 percent-11 percent range.
As for May (Nielsen’s reporting period is April 28-May 25), YouTube hit an all-time high for the fourth straight month with 12.5 percent of TV use. The top three FAST services — Roku Channel, Tubi and Pluto TV — accounted for a combined 5.7 percent of use. Pluto’s total is rolled into the 2.2 percent for its parent company, Paramount, but as Roku and Tubi tally 4.7 percent between them, Pluto TV is at 1 percent. Netflix’s You was the most streamed program in May, racking up 4 billion minutes of watch time.
Nielsen’s Gauge figures for May are below.