According to The Harris Poll, while 77% of U.S. adults say they regularly watch TV shows via either cable (55%) or satellite TV (23%), 43% say they regularly watch via streaming, including 67% of Millennials.
At 85%, the percentage of Americans saying they most often watch TV on a TV set (live feed, recorded or on demand), sans streaming, is down from 89% in 2012. Streaming, meanwhile, is up from 20% in 2012 to 23% today. The preferential shift is strongest among Millennials, among whom non-streaming TV preference has declined from 77% to 68% while streaming preference has grown from 41% to 47%.
Some 23% of Americans say they're watching more online/streaming TV programming now than they were a year ago, while 37% say their online/streaming viewership is no different than last year, and 7% say they're streaming less now than a year ago. Looking ahead, 18% expect to be watching more online/streaming TV programming a year from now while 4% expect to be watching less, and 50% don't anticipate a change.
Among those who regularly watch TV shows via streaming, 74% use a computer to do so; 55% use a TV set (whether via set-top box, game system or smart TV); 37% watch on tablets, including 63% of tablet owners; and 30% watch on smartphones, including 42% of smartphone owners.
