SNL Kagan: The next 10 years look bright for the US cable industry

For the US cable industry, the next 10 year look positive, according to SNL Kagan, an offering of S&P Global Market Intelligence. The research shows that the industry’s broadband advantage and bundling stance will enhance revenues from 2016 to 2026.The revised cable forecast incorporates a slightly improved outlook for the video segment and continued upside for the broadband services, which will translate into revenue growth.The SNL Kagan researchers behind the report, Tony Lenoir and Ian Olgeirson, said that like many industries, “cable isn’t immune to shifting preferences, but continued growth in broadband may propel revenue growth on both the residential and commercial end.”Broadband subscriptions are forecast to swell by more than 8 million over the next 10 years, reaching 71 million. Residential revenues are projected to increase from $108.38 billion in 2016 to $117.7 billion in 2026, or $9.32 billion over the 10-year interval while contributions from commercial services will help push total industry revenue from $130.57 billion in 2016 to $140.99 billion in 2016, or $10.42 billion over the 10-year period.For the researchers, despite ongoing declines in video, the next 10 years look pretty good for this sector. Basic video subscriptions are projected to drop by an annual compounded growth (CAGR) rate of 1.5% to 45.4 million by 2026, slower than the 1.7% CAGR in last year’s 10-year projection.