Moffett: Customers to drop cable TV subscriptions at even faster rate in Q2

MoffettNathanson analyst Craig Moffett predicted that the pay-TV industry will continue to lose subscribers during the second quarter, led by 120,000 net losses of video subscribers at industry leader Comcast. Overall, Moffett predicted video subscriber growth of -0.5 percent in the second quarter, essentially flat from the first quarter but down significantly from the same quarter in 2014.

"Seasonality won't help," Moffett added in a report released July 13. "The second quarter is always the weakest of the year. We estimate that the pay TV sector shed 321,000 subscribers in Q2 [in 2014]. [In 2015], we expect that number to be markedly worse." Further, Moffett noted that recently launched streaming alternatives such as Sling TV, Sony PlayStation Vue and HBO Now could have a significant impact to the industry in the second quarter, even though many have only been available for just a few months.