Nielsen’s August 2023 report, The Gauge™, reveals a resurgence in traditional TV viewership. According to the report, broadcast and cable combined for 50.6% of total TV usage, while streaming accounted for 38.3%.
Broadcast viewership experienced a 1.6% increase compared to July, marking its first gain since January 2023. The “participation variety” and “general variety” genres, along with drama and news, contributed to the growth in broadcast viewership. Drama accounted for 16.9% of the category, while news made up 24.8%.
Cable saw the largest monthly increase across all categories, with a 1.7% rise in viewership. This surge was driven a 21.6% lift in cable sports viewing due to NFL preseason events and an 18% increase in cable news viewing following the first presidential debate. Notably, viewers aged 65 and older were responsible for 85% of the overall increase in cable usage.
However, when compared to the previous year, both broadcast and cable viewing declined. Broadcast viewing was down 5.5%, while cable viewing dropped 10.6%. Streaming, on the other hand, fell 1.6% in August, largely influenced the back-to-school season. Around 80% of the decline in streaming viewership came from the 2-17 age group.
Among streamers, Peacock experienced the largest increase in usage, up 8.3%, thanks to events like WWE SummerSlam and The Super Mario Brothers Movie. Paramount+ also showed strong growth, rising 4.2% with its original series Special Ops: Lioness and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
The top streaming title in August was Suits, available on both Netflix and Peacock, with 11.7 billion minutes viewed. The Lincoln Lawyer, a Netflix original series, followed with 4.5 billion minutes viewed. Disney+ also had successful titles, with Bluey at 4.2 billion minutes and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 at 3.2 billion minutes, despite the drop in streaming usage among viewers under 18.
Since August 2022, streaming has gained 7.0 share points, growing from 31.3% to 38.3% of total TV usage, according to The Gauge.
The Gauge™ is Nielsen’s monthly snapshot of total broadcast, cable, and streaming consumption. It provides a comprehensive overview of the content audiences are watching, when they’re watching it, and who they are. The report combines data from Nielsen’s National TV measurement service and Nielsen Streaming Platform Ratings.
Source: Nielsen
