According to a newly released analysis from Kagan, the media research unit of S&P Global Market Intelligence, U.S. broadband subscription growth remained elevated in the third quarter from a long-term perspective -- which the analyst said perhaps suffers from a difficult comparison with the booming gains of 2020.
Either way, the analyst reckons the broadband subscription segment's elevated growth is in stark contrast to declining traditional multichannel services -- though Kagan notes that the "impact of the third quarter declines was largely offset by seasonal appetites for virtual multichannel alternatives."
Kagan's latest research states that U.S. broadband subscriber growth cooled significantly in the third quarter, influenced by the pandemic'a pull forward on a maturing sector, as well by the leading edge of 5G alternatives.
Meanwhile, the analyst determined that wireline and satellite internet service providers added an estimated 726,000 subs in the quarter, less than half the increase logged in the year-ago period but still well above the 2019 third-quarter pace.
The research found combined residential cable, telco and satellite broadband subscribers reached nearly 110 million at the end of the third quarter, "up 3.3% as the pandemic boom fades with fewer than 3.6 million net adds year over year," according to Kagan's full industry estimates.
Kagan also noted that residential penetrations plateaued in the quarter, whereby wireline subscriptions as a percentage of occupied households dipped to 83.3%, just slightly below the 84.5% from satellite broadband services.
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