Sling TV adds 145,000 new customers in Q3 2024 thanks in large part to live sports
DISH continued to lose linear satellite subscribers, but the losses were fewer than the year-ago quarter.
Sling TV has had its usual fall subscriber bump, according to the third quarter earnings report of its parent company EchoStar. The firm revealed its quarterly earnings on Tuesday, and as part of the report showed that while its streaming service added hundreds of thousands of new customers in Q3, it was continuing to lose linear satellite viewers at a steady rate.
Key Details:
- Sling TV gained 145,000 subscribers in Q3, likely thanks to the return of fall sports.
- DISH lost around 188,000 linear customers in the same period.
- All eyes are on DISH and DIRECTV to see if the two satellite companies will merge into one.
The earnings report from EchoStar shows that Sling TV was able to add 145,000 subscribers during the quarter, ending at 2.14 million. In March, the streamer reported that it finished the fourth quarter of 2023 with 2.06 million customers. The increase is almost certainly attributable to the return of “Monday Night Football” and other NFL games, as well as the onset of the college football season.
The gains weren’t enough to help DISH net more pay-TV customers overall during the quarter, however. Its linear satellite TV service lost 188,000 subscribers during the quarter, leading to an overall net loss of 43,000. That’s still fewer than the year-ago quarter when DISH lost 64,000 net pay-TV subscribers in Q3. Altogether, DISH has 8.03 million pay TV subs, down from 8.07 million at the end of the second quarter.
The company has also announced a fresh cash infusion of $5 billion to allow it to continue building out a national 5G network. DISH foresees a big future for itself in the broadband marketplace, and believes that diversifying is key to its long-term survival.
Also key to that survival is its plan to merge with DIRECTV. The two satellite companies have finally entered into the merger process after years of speculation and false starts, and their combination would instantly create the largest pay-TV company in the country.
There are stumbling blocks to overcome, however. Currently, a group of DISH bondholders is refusing to agree to a debt swap plan offered by the two companies. If DISH and DIRECTV cannot mollify these investors, it could put the transaction in peril. Should the deal go through, however, it would give DISH the freedom to keep expanding its broadband business while DIRECTV handles the pay-TV side of things.
Sling TV
Sling TV is The Streamable’s choice for cord cutters on a budget. Sling is a live TV streaming service with multiple channel packages. The $40/month Sling Orange plan offers about 30 channels, including Disney Channel and ESPN. The $40/month Sling Blue plan offers about 40 channels, including ABC, Fox, and NBC in major markets.
You can combine Orange+Blue for a total of $55 / month. Sling also offers many channel add-on packages starting at $6/month.