U.S. TV viewing diverges: streaming share rises to 49.6% as traditional prime-time ratings recover year over year
Goldman Sachs tracking shows that streaming continued to gain share of TV viewing time in August, although total viewing declined month over month. In the fourth quarter, traditional TV prime-time commercial ratings rose year over year, with cable companies posting divergent results.
Original source：Goldman Sachs & Co. LLCFirst published on Unhidea：Original source date：
Key takeaway
Streaming continued to gain TV viewing share against a backdrop of declining total viewing; traditional TV prime-time ratings recovered year over year, but the improvement did not extend to every cable company.
Streaming share is rising, but is viewing growing too?
Nielsen Gauge data show that streaming accounted for 49.6% of total U.S. TV viewing time in August 2026, up 0.6 percentage points from July and still the largest share among media categories.
As its share rose, streaming viewing fell 3.2% month over month. Because total TV viewing fell by a larger 4.4%, streaming still gained share.
YouTube accounted for a record 15.8% of total TV viewing time and remained the leading media distributor; its monthly viewing rose 6% from the previous month, including a 9% increase among adults aged 50 and older.
How did the end of the World Cup change traditional TV viewing?
In August, broadcast TV accounted for 17.5% of total viewing time, down 2 percentage points from July. After the World Cup ended, broadcast viewing fell 14% month over month, and sports fell from 30% of broadcast viewing in July to less than 9%.
Cable TV's share rose 0.2 percentage points month over month to 18.9%, although its total viewing fell 3%. Sports viewing rebounded 26% month over month, nearly offsetting the 27% decline in July.
The end of World Cup-related programming also affected streaming platforms: Peacock's share of total TV viewing time fell 1 percentage point to 1.6%, while Disney's streaming services gained 0.1 percentage points to 4.8%.
How did traditional TV perform in prime time in the fourth quarter?
For the week ended 11 October, quarter-to-date broadcast prime-time commercial ratings were up 7% year over year, below the third quarter's 16% increase. Excluding sports, they rose 11%, faster than the third quarter's 3%.
Among viewers aged 18 to 49, quarter-to-date prime-time commercial ratings rose 46% year over year at CBS and 21% at FOX, while ABC and NBC fell 2% and 3%, respectively. Excluding sports, CBS rose 52% and FOX fell 12%.
Cable prime-time commercial ratings were up 6% year over year in the fourth quarter to date, after being flat in the third quarter. The prime-time data use the C3 metric, unlike the August media shares calculated by total viewing time.
Why did cable companies' all-day viewing diverge?
For the week ended 25 October, quarter-to-date L+3 all-day cable viewership, weighted by target audience and advertising revenue, rose 15% year over year at Versant and 13% at AMC Networks; Disney fell 12% and Fox Corporation fell 34%.
Earlier C3 all-day ratings data for the week ended 11 October also showed divergence: Versant rose 10% year over year, while Fox Corporation, Disney and AMC Networks fell 9%, 3% and 6%, respectively. The two datasets use different methodologies and cutoff dates.
