According to a new Nielsen report, streaming services outperformed both cable and network television in overall viewership among Americans for the first time in May.
Last month, streaming services accounted for 44.8% of all television viewers, the largest share to date. Nielsen found that total cable and network television viewers account for 44.2% of all television viewers.
Compared to May 2021, streaming usage is up 71%, broadcasting is down 21%, and cables are down 39%.
The report also shows that YouTube had the highest viewership at 12.5%. Netflix followed 7.5% of its total viewership that month.
Nielsen points out that free streaming services are a major factor in the overall success of streaming. PlutoTV, Roku Channel and Tubi accounted for a total of 5.7% of The Total TV viewing in May.