YouTube TV says it has more than 8 million subscribers
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YouTube TV now has more than 8 million paid subscribers, the company said Tuesday, making it one of the largest TV providers in the country.
Why it matters: YouTube TV is poised to surpass the leading satellite providers soon, and could have more subscribers than cable rivals in the next few years.
The big picture: Digital "skinny bundles" like YouTube TV and Hulu with Live TV, which had 4.6 million subscribers as of September, haven't attracted enough subscribers yet to offset the decline in cable and satellite customers, and experts don't expect that they ever will.
- In an annual letter outlining the company's priorities, Head of YouTube Neal Mohan called out YouTube's TV and subscription endeavors as one of the company's four biggest priorities in the year ahead.
- "Viewers globally now watch more than 1 billion hours on average of YouTube content on their TVs every day," Mohan wrote.
- The company said last week that its YouTube Premium and YouTube Music offerings now have more than 100 million subscribers combined.
What to watch: As YouTube invests more in television, onlookers will be watching whether it's willing to dish out more for live sports and premium content.
- YouTube's first season distributing the NFL's lucrative Sunday Ticket package reportedly helped drive over 1 million subscriptions to the service last year.
By the numbers: Charter is now the largest pay-TV provider in the country, narrowly edging out Comcast. They each have roughly 14.1 million customers.
- Dish said late last year that it had 6.7 million satellite TV subscribers and 2.12 million subscribers to its digital offering, Sling TV.
- DirecTV had an estimated 8.127 million subscribers as of January, according to market research firm MoffettNathanson.
