Part 5/9:
Crippled by Cord-Cutting
As millions of viewers abandon cable television, ESPN hasn't been spared the consequences. Cord-cutting continues to plague the network, as more consumers opt for streaming services. This has severely dented ESPN’s subscriber levels, revealing the cracks in their traditional broadcasting model.
Where once 100 million households were inclined towards cable packages, the plunging statistics show a descent to 70 million homes. With more channels available through streaming platforms, sports networks face stiff competition. Disney’s attempt to pivot towards livestreaming sports through services like ESPN+ has only produced minimal gains, as it recently reported a dip to 24.8 million subscribers—a 2% decrease year-over-year.