2005 Cable TV Facts

CABLETELEVISION ADVERTISING BUREAU
830 THIRD AVENUE, NEW YORK, NY 10022 (212) 508-1200

2005 Cable TV Facts

The charts that appear in this area are taken from the CAB's 2005 Cable TV Facts publication. The 2005 Cable TV Fact Book is a valuable resource for anyone involved in the evaluation, planning or buying of media. If would like to request one or more copies of this book, please complete this form.

The 2005 television viewer is in total, irrevocable control. With ever-more television content choices – content that indulges the full gamut of personal interests and passions, today's viewers have re-made the television landscape into a - One TV World - where the best content wins viewers and viewer loyalty and legacy delivery mechanism labels like "Broadcast" television are near meaningless.

Within One TV World, the reasons viewers are in perpetual migration into ever-more Cable content has been made clear to us through our viewer research:

It's the fact that Cable created branded television.
Viewers habitually tune to Cable "as much for the brands" as they do for the specific programs.

This dual-destination appeal helps explain how Cable is now well past the tipping point as Ad-Supported Cable is now over half of all television viewing and depended upon heavily by US advertisers to build reach and connectivity to all coveted television audiences. With over $13.4 billion projected to be spent in 2005 by Ad-Supported Cable networks for the best of original and proven-favorites programming, reach-building and superior connectivity of Cable will grow even more this year.

In terms of mature distribution, Ad-Supported Cable penetrates into the 84% of all US television homes that advertisers care the most about. The remaining 16% of non-Cable or Broadcast-only homes are quite downscale, are less educated and are low-return prospects for most advertisers.

Cable dominated 2004 TV and 2005 thus far is going to Cable across the board; outperforming all other sources of TV in ratings, reach-ability, geographic targeting and content diversity. In terms of quick reach within One TV World, Cable has at least drawn even and more often surpassed Broadcast in one-week reach-ability across all key advertiser targets.

This past year, CAB conducted a landmark study with Knowledge Networks/SRI - that contradicted long held notions of TV viewing. The "How People Use TV" Study compared Broadcast and Cable viewing patterns, preferences, and responses to advertising.

In 2005, advertisers can connect with ever-more consumers by using Cable interchangeably with Broadcast – utilizing Cable to do any and all of the heavy lifting in the television plan: nationally, regionally and locally.

CABLE GROWTH CHARTS:

CABLE VIEWERSHIP CHARTS:

CABLE MARKETING & MEDIA PLANNING CHARTS:

# # #