Copyright MassLive
From satellite dishes and cable boxes, to smart phones and smart TVs — it’s no secret the way we “tune in” to our home entertainment has changed substantially over the past decade. Where living room remotes once rested on the arm of every couch, smart TV controllers now dominate; and where traditional cable packages were once the channel surfer’s option of choice, streaming services have changed the game. State data shows the reality of this trend — with cable subscriptions plummeting nearly 45% over the past decade. In Massachusetts, cable subscription fell from 2.19 million in 2013 to fewer than 1.2 million as of December 2024 — far lower than in 2000 when state data begins. Read more: A million Mass. households say goodbye to cable in massive 12-year collapse But it doesn’t stop there. “The video marketplace has undergone massive change over the past 10 years,” a Comcast spokesperson told MassLive. “U.S. pay-TV homes have declined from about 100 million to 50 million today, yet the number of choices consumers have to watch content has grown significantly.” Of that 50 million national loss, at least 670,000 subscribers were from Massachusetts — including 171,000 between 2006 and 2012 alone. And some communities are dropping cable faster than others. In some cases, communities dropped their cable subscriptions by more than 70% since 2015. Somerville leads the pack percentage-wise, shedding 15,019 cable subscribers or just over 70% in 10 years. That was followed by Lawrence, which lost 15,251 subscribers or just over 67% of its subscriber base in that same time frame. Read more: USPS makes major updates to its services: What to expect with mail in the coming months Where consumers once bundled dozens of cable channels, many now build their own “à la carte” streaming lineups through apps and subscriptions, using high-speed internet as the foundation. “It’s a convergence of multiple trends,” Lee Rainie, founding director of internet and technology research at the Pew Research Center and now director of Elon University’s Imagining the Digital Future Center said. “With the internet you can throw your content online for free, like YouTube, and keep an archive on a free platform — as opposed to cable, where you had to pay for a slot,” Rainie said. According to state data, cable cutting is happening at higher rates in urban areas, while some rural communities have actually seen an uptick in subscriptions since 2015. A collection of 18 rural communities saw cable subscriber gains, many of which didn’t have any cable subscribers in 2015. These communities were Chilmark, Chester, Hancock, Hinsdale, Lanesborough, Middlefield, Montgomery, New Braintree, New Marlborough, Princeton, Royalton Sandisfield, Savoy, Tolland, Tyringham, Warwick, West Stockbridge and Worthington. Where does your community stand? Top 10 communities that ‘cut the cord’ since 2015 Somerville — 21,431 subscribers to 6,412 — 70.1% loss Lawrence — 22,695 subscribers to 7,444 — 67.2% loss Everett — 11,130 subscribers to 3,874 — 62.2% loss Westfield — 13,227 subscribers to 4,669 — 64.7% loss Cambridge — 31,775 subscribers to 11,447 — 64% loss Chelsea — 8,852 subscribers to 3,236 — 63.4% loss Amherst —7,283 subscribers to 2,681 —63.2% loss Malden — 17,919 subscribers to 6,651 — 62.9% loss Boston — 191,812 subscribers to 75,830 — 60.5% loss Lowell — 30,502 subscribers to 12,149 — 60.2% loss
