Why Cord Cutting is Impacting Satellite Companies more than Cable Companies

In an article in Axios today, they discussed that Satellite companies lost 1.5M subscribers in 2017 compared to 660K subscribers by the top cable companies.

Cable companies have been able to keep some customers by bundling high speed internet, satellite companies haven’t been able to do the same. While some offer satellite internet, those services are plagued with slow speed and high latency — both difficult to overcome in the world of streaming content.

This is why 5G (next generation wireless internet) is so important to companies like AT&T (who owns DIRECTV) because it allows them to compete with a high speed internet and media content bundle.

The good news for Echostar (parent of Dish Network & Sling) and AT&T (parent of DIRECTV and DIRECTV NOW) — is that their streaming services currently own 45% and 24% of the live streaming market share respectively.

While these services don’t have the same margins as those bundles of their premium satellite services, there is hope that they can make it up with add-ons like additional streams, additional DVR storage, and by offering comparable satellite bundles without the need of the installation of a dish.