Last week, some mainstream media outlets trumpeted the release of The Nielsen Company’s latest estimate of TV households in the United States as a harbinger of bad times to come for television.
Some even questioned if television had reached its zenith and is in a state of decline due to a variety of reasons, including the toll of the recession on household discretionary spending and the impact of cord-cutters, folks who disconnect their traditional pay-TV service in favor of free or less expensive over-the-top alternatives.
Not so fast, says Pat McDonough, senior vice president, Insights and Analysis, for The Nielsen Company. The projected decline in 2012 from 115.9 million this year to 114.7 million next year is not a sign of television’s demise but rather a blip resulting from a host of factors.
In this podcast interview, McDonough lays out the reasons for the drop off and puts the role of cord-cutters into perspective.
